History

Smart Systems Innovations, LLC owns an exclusive license to Smart Systems (NY)'s US patent 5,828,044. It also owns its own portfolio of patents and patent applications. These are licensed as one unified portfolio.

Privately held, Smart Systems Co., LLC (NY) was founded in January 2004 in efforts to localize Korean contactless card based technologies in America. The project was created by John J. Lee, General Manager of US Operations of C&C Enterprise Co., Ltd. of South Korea at the time, a specialist in contactless payment, and the management team here headed by Michael J. Simon. After three months of extensive evaluation of the business opportunity, the two principal officers began working full-time at the end of December, 2003. At that time, Smart Systems was formed as a New York LLC and established an office in New York City. In May 2004, Mr. Lee left his duties as General Manager of C&C in order to devote full attention to the US market through Smart Systems.

Transit agencies in the U.S. have been moving away from magnetic-stripe to contactless cards. Over the past ten years, major US banks have started to issue contactless bankcards on a large scale. While the agencies want to offload card issuance and management to the financial industry, the issuers want the card distinctiveness and top-of-wallet effect given by transit use. To unite the two industires, an anti-fraud solution is necessary.

Smart Systems was specifically formed to develop and deliver the IP of offline authorization. It owns thenecessary patented technologies developed and currently in use in Korea that allow the offline authorization of credit/debit card transactions using a negative list. Seoul’s mass transit has been using a credit card-based AFC system since 1996. Eight Korean financial institutions have issued nearly 30 million transit credit/debit cards to date, which have become the main form of transit pass in Seoul’s subways, buses and taxis.

7/31/2011 Smart Systems licensed its patents to Specialty Acquirer LLC ("Speacq"), forming a unified portfolio with the new corporate name Smart Systems Innovations LLC.

7/28/2009 Patent 7,566,003 approved by USPTO.

8/4/2009 Patent 7,568,617 approved by USPTO.

5/11/2007 First license of SS (NY)'s patent 5,828,044 to a major bankcard company.

12/1/2006 We offer to license card terminal designs to integrators in exchange for role as transaction processor.

11/14/2006 Contract with Global Payments for transaction clearing.

10/23/2006 Demonstration model of offline card terminal completed.

10/2/2006 Speacq becomes a licensed MasterCard Vendor.

8/12/2006 First successful run of prototype fare processor program.

6/25/2006 Speacq becomes a MasterCard PayPass licensee to create POS devices.

5/4/2006 CEO Simon speaks at CardTech SecurTech, a card conference.

3/22/2006 Simon speaks at APTA fare collection conference.

6/14/2005 Specialty Acquirer LLC (Speacq)founded as the operations arm of Smart Systems.

11/17/2004 Smart Systems acquires key negative list patent 5,828,044 from Korea.

10/25/2004 Smart Systems hires Martin Silbernagl as CTO.

3/29/2004 Smart Systems founded in New York.

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