Spotlight: Viableware’s pay-at-the-table technology takes off

When restaurants use Viablewares Rail system, patrons paying their bills will be greeted by a sleek folder that opens to reveal a screen displaying the bill. A slot on the side will accommodate a credit or debit card. The Rail allows diners to split the bill with companions, calculate the tip and even redeem a coupon.

Originally devised to fight credit card fraud, the Rail system not only handles payments at the tableno more surrendering your credit card and waiting for the server to reappearbut also vertically integrates security and authentication to provide restaurants with an entire method for credit card processing. Customers can feel secure with their credit and debit cards close by. Kirkland-based Viableware is testing its made-in-Spokane devices at restaurants in Seattle and on the Eastside, says CEO Joe Snell, with rollout planned for the first quarter of 2012.

The United States market for tabletop restaurant paymentalready common in other countriesis growing, led by Dallas-based TableTop Media, whose Ziosk tabletop unit incorporates ordering, advertising and entertainment; it has been picked up by major restaurant chains like Chilis. On the West Coast, Palo Altos E la Carte has attracted notice with its tableside Presto tablets for ordering, payming and even game playing.

Snell believes Rail has more universal appeal than tablets or clunky touchscreens because of size and cost. Since Rail includes a secure wireless network, a base station for the devices and technical support, a typical 60-table restaurant would pay $450 a month for the service and the devices, which Snell says works out to less than the competition’s estimated fees and hardware costs. And, as opposed to large, table-mounted kiosks, the compact and concealable Rail is adaptable to different classes of restaurant, from family to upscale.