improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page . learn how and when to remove these template messages this article is an orphan as no other articles link to it . please introduce links to this page from related articles ; try the find link tool for suggestions . may 2014 this article contains content that is written like an advertisement . please help improve it by removing promotional content and inappropriate external links and by adding encyclopedic content written from a neutral point of view . march 2014 learn how and when to remove this template message a major contributor to this article appears to have a close connection with its subject . it may require cleanup to comply with wikipedia s content policies particularly neutral point of view . please discuss further on the talk page . november 2014 learn how and when to remove this template message learn how and when to remove this template message jpay type subsidiary industry inmate video visitation financial services for the corrections market founded 2002 headquarters miramar florida key people ryan shapiro ceo number of employees 250 parent securus technologies website jpay.com jpay is a privately held corrections related service provider based in the united states with its headquarters in miramar florida . the company contracts with state departments of correction doc county jails and private federal prisons to provide technologies and services including money transfer email video visitation and parole and probation payments to approximately 1.5 million inmates throughout 35 states . 1 contents 1 history 2 business model and growth strategy 3 products and services 3.1 money transfer 3.2 communications and inmate devices 3.3 parole and probation payments 3.4 charitable donations 4 criticisms 4.1 state licensing violations 4.2 intellectual property claims 4.3 predatory practices 4.4 kickbacks 5 references 6 external links history edit jpay was started in 2002 by the company s ceo and founder ryan shapiro . in 2005 the company moved its headquarters from new york to miami . in 2009 jpay s services expanded to offer an inmate mp3 player the jp3 and a library of music tracks for purchase . in 2011 jpay moved its headquarters from miami to miramar florida to accommodate a larger call center . 2 in 2012 jpay launched a tablet the jp4 designed for the corrections industry which enables inmates to read and draft emails play games and listen to music . 3 it also allows inmates to view and attach photos and videograms . 4 the decision to permit use of the jp4 and the full extent of its functions is made by the state corrections departments . 5 jpay s tablet has been distributed in seven doc agencies including north dakota georgia florida louisiana virginia michigan and washington . 6 7 in april 2015 jpay was acquired by securus technologies though terms of the agreement were kept secret . 8 business model and growth strategy edit in a 2012 bloomberg business week article entitled jpay the apple of the prison system ryan shapiro the company s founder and ceo stated we re looking for products that an inmate would want to buy and a corrections facility would accept . he went on to state we take outside applications redevelop them for prisons specifically and then deploy them the prison doesn t pay for any of our services ; it s the end user who pays . and as the jp4 was being launched shapiro was quoted saying think about education think about games ; it s endless where we could go . we think it s as big if not bigger than the money transfer business . 3 in a 2014 cnbc article ryan shapiro stated our goal is to become the nation s digital consumer app company for prisons . 9 products and services edit money transfer edit an inmate s friend or family member can use jpay s money transfer service to deposit money to the inmate s commissary or trust account . jpay offers electronic payment and deposit options which include credit and debit card payments via online phone and mobile app channels . the company has a relationship with moneygram to accept cash at moneygram s u.s. agent locations like walmart and cvs pharmacy . 10 11 additionally the company processes money orders on behalf of its contracted agencies . communications and inmate devices edit jpay provides services that an inmate and an inmate s family and friends can use to communicate such as video visitation email videogram 4 instant messaging 4 and a tablet computer jp4 . 12 parole and probation payments edit jpay provides payment services for offenders to make community corrections and court ordered payments . 13 14 as part of its parole and probationary services jpay also offers a release card 14 jpay progress card which is a prepaid reloadable mastercard . 15 while all agencies contract to use jpay for money transfer services they do not all utilize jpay s full ranges of services . 12 charitable donations edit jpay has been one of the corporate supporters of the creative corrections education foundation a nonprofit founded by a former texas warden which collects contributions from prison inmates and from corporate sponsors to fund scholarships for children of prison inmates . in 2014 the charity reported having provided 63 000 in scholarships over the previous two years . 16 criticisms edit state licensing violations edit in 2012 the pennsylvania department of banking fined jpay 80 000 for violating the state s money transmitter act by failing to have the necessary state license since it began operating in the state in 2004 . 17 in total jpay has been fined 408 500 across seven states for operating unlicensed businesses . 18 intellectual property claims edit in february 2015 valerie buford sued the indiana department of corrections after she learned that her brother leon benson had been placed in solitary confinement had good conduct time deducted and had jpay access revoked after she had reposted a videogram sent via jpay on a facebook page campaigning for his release . 19 although access was later restored buford continued to argue that the actions had a chilling effect on her ability to communicate with benson . officials of the prison claimed the actions were to protect jpay s intellectual property ; at the time its terms of use stated that jpay held the copyright to any content that was sent through its systems regardless of its original author . following a may 2015 posting by the electronic frontier foundation that criticized the company for attempting to abuse copyright law jpay amended its terms of use to no longer contain this clause . 19 20 21 predatory practices edit senator cory booker democrat new jersey vowed to ask the consumer financial protection bureau to intercede on behalf of inmates against jpay s allegedly predatory practices with its prepaid debit release cards which are often the only form in which released prisoners are permitted to collect their prison earnings and remaining commissary balances . allegedly the company deducts non optional fees which can exceed 40 % of the funds owed to released inmates . 22 kickbacks edit in approximately half of the states it operates in 12 contracts between the various state prison systems or individual prisons and jpay include an agreement to apportion part of the fees collected from those sending money to the prisoners back to the prison operators in exchange for giving jpay a monopoly over financial transfers to inmates . according to state mandated disclosures in illinois correctional institution operators there received approximately 48 000 for 2013 in what company founder shapiro prefers to call commissions . 18 one prisoner released in 2010 following a 28 year incarceration for murder identified the potential hardship on the poorest families leaving a mother of three with a husband in jail to decide do i send money to him so he can afford to stay in touch with the kids or do i feed the kids 18 meanwhile jpay funds lavish parties for corrections institute bureaucrats during the american correctional association s annual convention providing tequila hand rolled cigars and live mariachi band as well as sponsoring an award including a trip presented by the association of state correctional administrators to former state corrections directors . 18 23 at the political level despite many of jpay s contracts explicitly banning lobbying 24 shapiro says the company s lawyers approved jpay s hiring registered state lobbyists 25 and spending 20 000 lobbying washington in attempts to take the federal prisons financial transactions contract from bank of america . 18 a master contract between jpay and the national association of state procurement officials and the multi state corrections procurement alliance valid until july 2015 set out kickback rates to any state signing on of 50 per inbound money transfer to prisoners 5 per outbound email 5 per mp3 device 10 per jp5 tablet device and 5 % of jpay s music download fees which are 30 % 50 % higher than itunes . 26 references edit nick leiber jpay working to be apple of prison system sfgate august 20 2012 narayan bhat april 18 2011 . jpay relocates its call center to miramar & adds 75 new jobs . techology marketing corp. a b nick leiber september 12 2012 . jpay the apple of the u.s. prison system . bloomberg business week . a b c donna rogers editor in chief april 3 2014 . from flintstones to jetsons . corrections forum . cs1 maint multiple names authors list link glass jeremy november 5 2014 . i played with a tablet made for prison inmates . thrillist media group . retrieved june 19 2015 . kimberly railey august 18 2013 . some prisons let inmates connect with tablets . usa today . zach schepis september 26 2013 . freedom behind bars orange is the new black week . breakthru radio . miramar tech company jpay bought by dallas firm . south florida business journal . retrieved 15 july 2015 . gusovsky dina october 1 2014 . the big business of selling apps to prison inmates . cnbc . retrieved june 19 2015 . jpay . sending money it just got easier . mdoc.state.ms.us . mississippi department of corrections . archived from the original on june 4 2015 . retrieved february 23 2014 . transfer money online money transfer and bill pay moneygram global money transfer . moneygram.com . retrieved february 23 2014 . a b c leslie kraft burke september 28 2012 . jpay offers innovative services to corrections ; grows revenue . south florida business journal . jpay inmate services send money send email send packages . jpay.com . retrieved february 23 2014 . a b jpay . corrections marketplace . american correctional association . retrieved february 23 2014 . jpay parole & probation release cards . jpay.com . retrieved february 23 2014 . joe blundo commentary prisoners give to fund for children of inmates . the columbus dispatch . october 16 2014 . retrieved june 19 2015 . ford turner february 7 2012 . florida firm fined 80 000 . reading eagle business weekly . a b c d e daniel wagner september 30 2014 . meet the prison bankers who profit from the inmates with the ultimate captive markets prison bankers and state jailers make money off high fees for financial services . . center for public integrity via time . a b dave maass may 5 2015 . the hidden cost of jpay s prison email service . electronic frontier foundation . retrieved may 11 2015 . dave maass may 8 2015 . jpay will no longer claim ownership over inmate family correspondence . electronic frontier foundation . retrieved may 11 2015 . kristine guerra february 5 2015 . doc punishing woman for posting video of imprisoned brother on facebook suit says . the indianapolis star . retrieved may 11 2015