Zions Bancorp.'s check-image unit, NetDeposit Inc., has signed a licensing agreement with the payment processor DataTreasury Corp. covering patented processes for archiving check images.
The agreement is NetDeposit's second with DataTreasury, a small processor that claims broad patent rights over the process of creating and storing digital check images.
NetDeposit, of Salt Lake City, did not make a representative available on Wednesday to discuss the Dec. 21 announcement, but its executives have said in the past that it acted to protect its customers from patent infringement lawsuits.
Danne Buchanan, NetDeposit's chief executive, reiterated that point in Friday's press release, saying, "With this second agreement, which provides for a data archiving solution, our customers will enjoy increased intellectual property protection in the industry."
NetDeposit was the first financial company to strike a licensing deal with DataTreasury, in 2005, which covered the creation and processing of images. Since then DataTreasury, of Plano, Tex., has won licensing agreements with companies including JPMorgan Chase & Co. and the automated teller machine maker Diebold Inc.
DataTreasury has sued more than 60 banking companies and others involved in check-image processing to defend its patents.
