SAN FRANCISCO, CA and TORONTO, ON--(Marketwired - Apr 18, 2014) - QuickPay Corp. ("QuickPay") and Apps Network Appliances Inc. ("ANAi Global") are pleased to announce that QuickPay has acquired Nautical Technologies, ANAi Global's Parking, Transit and Tolling Technology division. In addition, the combined company has adopted a new name, "LocoMobi, Inc.," that fully reflects its vision of providing innovative solutions to the parking, transit and tolling markets around the globe. Initially, the new company plans to focus on expanding its growing footprint of smart parking deployments across parking operations in the United States and Canada.
QuickPay currently provides users a unified mobile payment application that works across all types of parking environments and scenarios. By integrating with a parking operator's existing equipment, either through software-only integrations or via QuickPay's proprietary gate kit, the company's platform, QP QuickPay, empowers drivers to seamlessly enter and exit gated parking facilities, and to pay for parking virtually anywhere parking is provided (e.g. gated facilities, non-gated facilities and on-street). The process is fast and safe as drivers do not have to worry about having cash or running their credit cards through the system. QP QuickPay also gives drivers the ability to skip pay-station and cashier lines and proceed directly to an exit gate. The systems can also be set up to enable QP QuickPay users to exit via monthly-only gates, further speeding up time to exit. The entire parking transaction is handled by phone via the free QP QuickPay smartphone app, available for iPhone and Android, by SMS text, or by a simple phone call. QuickPay also offers parking managers a way to track and reward frequent parkers. Every time consumers use QP QuickPay, they can earn valuable points toward future discounts and free parking.
Nautical Technologies was the very first to offer a cloud-based license plate recognition (LPR) system with a complete revenue engine that also provided a management system for virtual permitting systems, violation and citation management. The company also designed and implemented the first LPR-based system incorporating payment stations and barrier gates, which was integrated into a single cloud-based system. A garage using a Nautical Technologies LPR system knows every vehicle that enters and exits and links all payments to the vehicle's license plate. For parking owners and operators, this is of immense value as they have full knowledge of and receive payment from every single parker, rather than losing an estimated 30% of the parking revenue due to errors and fraud. The revenue gains after deploying a Nautical Technologies LPR system can significantly increase the value of the parking asset. The company also designs and implements a complete suite of traditional parking systems. Nautical Technologies' product offerings are unique in their level of comprehensiveness, innovation, and price: installations typically have twice the functionality at approximately half the price of competitive systems.
The combined company will continue to support all existing partners and product lines. It will offer consumer-facing mobile payments through the QP QuickPay brand, which will continue to be open and integrate with diverse existing parking equipment and systems, and proprietary parking systems through the Nautical Technologies brand. In addition, the company is developing solutions that integrate both technology suites to deliver new value for drivers as well as parking owners and operators. For drivers, the combination of QuickPay's mobile technology and gate kit with Nautical Technologies' product set leads to an ideal parking experience: a driver registers one time with the QP QuickPay app and enters his or her license plate and credit card. The driver then drives into a garage, LPR cameras recognize the vehicle and the gate opens automatically. When the driver is ready to leave, he or she drives to the exit gate, the LPR cameras recognize the car again, bill the credit card saved to the QP QuickPay account, the gates open and the driver exits -- all in a matter of seconds. A similar system works in non-gated scenarios as well. For owners and operators, LPR transactions can now be linked to registered drivers, enabling customer knowledge and communications.
"When I first thought about the future of parking, I envisioned a world where all forms of automation and innovation would change the parking experience for drivers, owners, and operators in fundamental ways, leading to increased convenience and better economics and utilization of scarce parking resources," says QuickPay Chairman and former CEO, Barney Pell. "When we first entered into a partnership agreement with ANAi a year ago, it was evident that we shared the same vision and could really make it happen together. I am extremely excited about our future together."
"Four years ago, I made the decision that the cloud and intelligent LPR systems were the future of parking management, as well as transit, tolling and other intelligent transportation needs," says ANAi Global Founder, Grant Furlane. "We are in a new world where all technologies will link and co-exist to make a more efficient transportation plan. We intend to lead this change."
Chris Thomas, a Co-Founder and Partner at Fontinalis Partners and Board Member of the combined company, added, "This acquisition furthers the company's mission of reinventing parking technology and providing a fully integrated mobile parking platform while also giving it the ability to begin expanding into other areas of innovation and mobility. We are incredibly excited about the platform and team they are building and look forward to engaging our partnership and network to help support the company's next stage of growth."
ANAi Global founder Grant Furlane has immediately assumed the position of LocoMobi CEO. Grant Furlane is a longtime veteran of parking and transportation payment equipment systems, and has more than 30 years of experience and innovation. He created many of the concepts consumers now take for granted, including pay-on-foot machines and paying for parking with credit cards. He served as President of the Canadian Parking Association and was Co-Chairman of the first world symposium on parking and intelligent transportation systems, which was attended by participants from over 50 countries. Barney Pell will continue as Chairman and Chief Strategist.
The combined company now has partnerships with most of the major parking operators in the U.S. and Canada, and is deployed in parking garages and lots, hotels, malls and theme parks and on-street in major cities throughout the U.S. and Canada. With a strong presence in North America, LocoMobi intends to expand globally with its current and newly established partners.
About QuickPay
QuickPay (http://qpme.com) was founded in 2010 with a vision to leverage trends in mobile and cloud technology to remove the pain and hassle of finding, accessing, and paying for parking and transportation. The QP QuickPay mobile parking platform offers users one mobile parking application that works across all parking environments -- drivers can even raise parking gates using their mobile phones -- and gives parking owners and operators an efficient way to enable mobile parking and a suite of innovations across all their assets with a single integrated solution. Today drivers can use QP QuickPay and a mobile phone to find and pay for parking at hundreds of locations across the U.S. and Canada, with new locations being added continually. Privately-held QuickPay Corp. is based in San Francisco and backed by successful investors and technology leaders, including A16Z Seed, Advanced Technology Ventures, Ecomobilite Ventures, IncWell and Fontinalis Partners. Co-founded by Ford Motor Company Executive Chairman Bill Ford, Fontinalis Partners invests in technology companies improving next-generation mobility.
About ANAi Global and Nautical Technologies
Apps Network Appliances Inc. (ANAi Global, http://www.anaiglobal.com) is a global developer and designer of advanced networking communications in Mobile, M2M and Cloud Technology. Applications (Apps) are designed and engineered for environments like enterprise, site offices, mobile, and cloud computing. Solutions include Intelligent Networking, Payment Card PCI Compliance, and Transportation Tracking.
Nautical Technologies (http://www.nauticaltechsolutions.com), a subsidiary of ANAi Global, provides leading edge Technology and Hardware for the Parking, Security and Transportation Markets. Parking Management solutions include Automatic License Plate Recognition (LPR), Cloud Applications (Apps), Mobile Applications (Apps), and Equipment. Recent contracts, all featuring integrated LPR, include Canada's Wonderland, which is the largest theme park in Canada with over 10,500 parking stalls and over 30,000 transactions per week; Cinema towers, Toronto; Wyndham Hotels in Pittsburgh; and Hilton Hotels Embassy Suites in San Francisco.
About Fontinalis Partners
Fontinalis Partners, with offices in Detroit and Boston, is a venture capital firm strategically focused on next generation mobility. The firm was founded in 2009 by Bill Ford, Ralph Booth, Mark Schulz, Chris Cheever and Chris Thomas. Fontinalis' mission is to leverage the team's considerable management experience, market access, strategic relationships, international expertise, and background in transportation innovation to scale companies providing next-generation mobility solutions. Fontinalis invests as a strategic partner across all facets of the world's mobility systems on a stage-, structure- and size-agnostic basis. Fontinalis is not affiliated with Ford Motor Company. More information about Fontinalis is available at www.fontinalis.com.
