This paper aims at answering three questions related to the association of users with software agents. This association applies to the e-commerce field in which users have online access to several products and services. Such users could delegate their routine and tedious transactions to agents that will be acting on their behalf. Why, how, and when this delegation occurs is discussed in this paper. Agents are considered in e-commerce due to the features that embody them, such as autonomy and mobility. © Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.