⚠ A Patent on the Setup Screen Is Not a Patent on the ProductModerate threat

Text (TXT) — threat to the moat

A portfolio that raises the cost of cloning Text's implementation without raising the cost of competing with Text.

A patent portfolio is only as good as the ground it fences off, and Text's fences sit around the edges of the field.

What the patents cover, and what customers pay forPatented: widget configuration, live preview, styling7 grantsPaid for: live chat, automated resolution, routing$49-79 per seatCompeting technologies unaffected by the patents210+Royalties earned from the portfolionone reportedA shield against being cloned, not a barrier against being competed with
The fences sit around the edges of the field rather than around the crop.

The most recently granted of the seven covers configuring a communication widget directly on a website — real-time previews, styling options, browser-side feedback1. That is a genuine piece of engineering and it makes the product pleasanter to adopt. It does not describe live chat, automated resolution, ticket routing or any of the functions a customer is paying 49 or 79 dollars a seat for2.

The consequence is that the patents raise the cost of cloning Text's implementation without raising the cost of competing with Text at all. Two hundred and ten technologies already compete in this market by the company's own count3, and Fin, Zendesk and Freshworks — the three rivals Text names in its filings4 — plainly did not need Text's setup screen to build theirs.

Patents in software more often earn their keep defensively, and Text is candid that this is the environment: it flags the risk of entities that use patents to enforce compensation, and notes that the cost of defence arrives regardless of the merits5. Seven registrations are a reasonable shield and a poor sword.

Licensing revenue would change this assessment, and there is none. Text reports, and its revenue note lists only product lines and the lease of office space6. A patent portfolio that never earns a royalty and never blocks a rival is a legal expense with good public relations.

References
  1. ReportedThe most recently granted of the seven covers configuring a communication widget directly on a website - real-time previews, styling options, browser-side feedback.
    Text Group Management Board report for 2025/26, margins, costs and cash (gross profit margin on sales of 67,6%, operating margin 38,6% and net margin 35,4%; cloud infrastructure costs rising, the migration completing in July 2025 after more than a year of duplicated cost, and completion not translating into cost reductions because of price increases regardless of provider and a deliberately expanded scope of purchased services; increased consulting, legal and public relations costs; fourth-quarter costs falling on cloud optimisation; a warning that more intensive use of artificial intelligence may cause further cost increases and that rising AI costs should press hardest on competitors offering free or freemium products; operating cash flow of PLN 161,6m and PLN 62,8m of cash; and a dividend policy of allocating the highest possible part of profit to shareholders) — FY2025/26 · publ. June 2026 · source ↗
  2. ReportedIt does not describe live chat, automated resolution, ticket routing or any of the functions a customer is paying 49 or 79 dollars a seat for.
    LiveChat pricing (Starter at USD 19 per person per month billed annually or 25 monthly; Team at USD 49 billed annually or 59 monthly; Business at USD 79 billed annually or 89 monthly; and Enterprise on custom pricing, all charged per agent per month with a discount for annual billing) — September 2026 · publ. September 2026 · source ↗
  3. ReportedTwo hundred and ten technologies already compete in this market by the company's own count, and Fin, Zendesk and Freshworks - the three rivals Text names in its filings - plainly did not need Text's setup screen to build theirs.
    Text Group Management Board report for 2025/26, strategy, products and market (the Service on Offense goal of turning customer service teams into revenue-generating centres, with the suite monitoring live traffic, recognising visitor intent, identifying returning visitors, enabling proactive outreach and tracking steps to monetisation or a qualified lead; a Go-To-Market period expected to be a long-term process requiring marketing expenditure with effects observed gradually; over 20 years of experience; competing solutions named as Fin, previously Intercom, Zendesk and Freshworks; the live-chat market valued at USD 1,06-1,17bn in 2024 growing 8-11%, the chatbot market at USD 0,7-6,95bn and the helpdesk market at USD 9,82-12,5bn; and Datanyze counting more than 210 different live-chat technologies, a substantial number offered freemium, with monetisation of free users judged difficult and ineffective) — FY2025/26 · publ. June 2026 · source ↗
  4. ReportedTwo hundred and ten technologies already compete in this market by the company's own count, and Fin, Zendesk and Freshworks - the three rivals Text names in its filings - plainly did not need Text's setup screen to build theirs.
    Text Group Management Board report for 2025/26, strategy, products and market (the Service on Offense goal of turning customer service teams into revenue-generating centres, with the suite monitoring live traffic, recognising visitor intent, identifying returning visitors, enabling proactive outreach and tracking steps to monetisation or a qualified lead; a Go-To-Market period expected to be a long-term process requiring marketing expenditure with effects observed gradually; over 20 years of experience; competing solutions named as Fin, previously Intercom, Zendesk and Freshworks; the live-chat market valued at USD 1,06-1,17bn in 2024 growing 8-11%, the chatbot market at USD 0,7-6,95bn and the helpdesk market at USD 9,82-12,5bn; and Datanyze counting more than 210 different live-chat technologies, a substantial number offered freemium, with monetisation of free users judged difficult and ineffective) — FY2025/26 · publ. June 2026 · source ↗
  5. ReportedPatents in software more often earn their keep defensively, and Text is candid that this is the environment: it flags the risk of entities that use patents to enforce compensation, and notes that the cost of defence arrives regardless of the merits.
    Text Group Management Board report for 2025/26, risks and key factors (currency risk arising because revenue is generated in US dollars while a significant portion of costs is incurred in Polish złoty, affecting reported results and the dividend, with the company not hedging its open foreign exchange positions; competition risk from more innovative or cost-effective solutions and from rivals allocating far greater funds to development and promotion, and from AI changing how software is developed and marketed in a way that could erode the advantage derived from the company's technology and experience; distribution risk from the loss or reduced effectiveness of channels such as Google, Shopify or BigCommerce, and from traditional search engines being replaced by LLM models or AI assistants in a way that may harm the SEO activities of the company and its affiliate partners; product concentration risk, since Text generates almost all revenue from LiveChat products; and risk from entities using patents to enforce compensation) — FY2025/26 · publ. June 2026 · source ↗
  6. ReportedText reports, and its revenue note lists only product lines and the lease of office space.
    Text Group Management Board report for 2025/26, margins, costs and cash (gross profit margin on sales of 67,6%, operating margin 38,6% and net margin 35,4%; cloud infrastructure costs rising, the migration completing in July 2025 after more than a year of duplicated cost, and completion not translating into cost reductions because of price increases regardless of provider and a deliberately expanded scope of purchased services; increased consulting, legal and public relations costs; fourth-quarter costs falling on cloud optimisation; a warning that more intensive use of artificial intelligence may cause further cost increases and that rising AI costs should press hardest on competitors offering free or freemium products; operating cash flow of PLN 161,6m and PLN 62,8m of cash; and a dividend policy of allocating the highest possible part of profit to shareholders) — FY2025/26 · publ. June 2026 · source ↗
Sources
Generated September 24, 2026