Portland tech company PayRange settled a patent infringement lawsuit that could see it land more than $62 million in licensing over 10 years.
PayRange makes a hardware device and accompanying software that can retrofit vending machines to accept mobile payments. In 2020, the company filed a patent infringement case against Florida-based KioSoft Technologies.
Under the agreement, KioSoft will license the technology covered by PayRange’s patents over 10 years. The base license is $40 million but could surpass $62 million if certain outcomes are met, according to a written statement released by PayRange.
Want more Portland startup and innovation news? Sign-up for The Beat delivered to your inbox weekly
PayRange's patents date back to 2013. Founder and CEO Paresh Patel called the settlement vindication of the company’s technological innovations.
“This agreement is more than a settlement; it’s recognition on the importance of intellectual property in fostering game-changing industry innovations, and in the American Dream itself in which hard work, innovation and individual property rights matter,” said Patel in a written statement. “We will continue to pursue enforcement of our payment app solution patents against all infringers.”
PayRange has spent roughly $10 million defending its patents, Patel said. The company has filed three lawsuits over the years and this settlement resolves two of them, he said. The additional suit is pending with a different party.
Patel launched PayRange in 2014. He previously working on technology in the vending machine industry. By Retrofitting existing machines it makes it easier for vending machine operators — whether it’s laundry, entertainment or food and beverage machines — to convert from a cash-based system.
Consumers use the PayRange app to make payments. The app also allows users to report problems with machines or receive notifications such as when a load of laundry is complete. There are about 500,000 machines in the PayRange network and Patel wants to add millions more. The company plans to add to its sales team in 2024 now that some of the litigation is settled.
“The way our legal system works is most people can’t afford or spend the time to enforce it; the time and energy,” he said. “I was committed to seeing it through. It was more about what is right and it’s wrong to take someone else’s property.”
PayRange has about 25 employees, Patel said. It has been profitable since 2020 and has financed these lawsuits itself. It reinvests profits into research and development. It has received about a dozen new patents in the last 12 to 18 months, Patel said.
KioSoft has been around since 2002 and also works in the vending machine world with payments and technology integration. The company has more than 200 employees, according to its website.
“While we had challenged the PayRange patents vigorously, the Patent Trial and Appeal Board upheld the PayRange patents and, although we disagreed with the result, we must now accept that PayRange has valid claims,” said KioSoft President Charles Lee in a written statement. “We respect the technologies that have helped the self-service industry thrive; and we look forward to continuing to lead innovation and development by providing best-in-class service to our customer with this fully-licensed technology, without any further legal distractions.”
