Protel was founded in 1983 and quickly became one of the Worlds leading payphone manufacturers with its Patented Smart Line Powered Technology. During the 1980s, over 1,000,000 Protel payphones were sold and placed into operation in 72 countries around the globe. These payphones incorporated both wire-line and wireless technology while providing coin and credit card payment methods. Protel was the first company to provide remote monitoring of its payphone equipment in the field. All of Protels early payphones provided remote monitoring of the coin in the box, usage activity, and inactivity reports. In the late 1990s, Protel began to incorporate its time tested payphone designs into other vending type equipment for the purpose of providing remote monitoring solutions to vending industries. These remote monitoring solutions are geared to providing operators with greater operational visibility, money controls and general machine information all of which work to reduce costs and maximize profitability. By 2001 Protel was providing a wireless Monitoring System for Merchandise Vending Machines with Internet access from mobile applications. In 2007, Protel provided the worlds first Credit Card wireless Reader on an Air Vacuum machine.