Tag: softcard app

Windows Phone users will be able to make mobile transactions thanks to Softcard

People with Windows Phones will now be able to make mobile payments thanks to a new application from AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile. The new Softcard app was released for Windows Phone last week, giving the platform one of its first mobile wallets that is supported by a wide range of retail companies. Softcard, formerly known as ISIS, is a mobile payment company that has been growing in popularity for some time, offering consumers an effective mobile wallet with a wide range of features.

Softcard offers to store consumer information to make transactions more convenient

Using Softcard, a consumer can store their financial information on a mobile device. They can also use the Softcard application to store information from retailers regarding loyalty programs and special offers. The app also facilitates mobile payments, using NFC technology to accomplish this task. In order to make a payment, however, a merchant must also support NFC technology, as well as the mobile wallet itself.

200,000 retailers in the US support Softcard

Some 200,000 retailers throughout the U.S. currently accept mobile transactions from Softcard and other NFC-based payment services. These retailers have adopted NFC-enabled point-of-sale systems that allow people to purchase products using their smartphones rather than credit and debit cards or physical currency. Softcard currently only works with a limited number of credit cards as well, supporting American Express, Wells Fargo, and Chase cards.

New mobile commerce services may be coming to the Windows Phone in the future

Windows Phone users have had very limited options in the mobile commerce space in the past. There are few applications currently available for the platform that are capable of facilitating mobile transactions, leaving Windows Phone users somewhat on the fringe of the mobile commerce space. Softcard is one of the first big name services that has come to the Windows Phone operating system, but it may not be the last. Windows Phone users may be in the minority when it comes to mobile consumers, but the demand for mobile commerce services among this demographic is quite high and growing quickly.

Isis has announced it is changing its name to Softcard.

The Verizon, T-Mobile, and AT&T supported, American mobile wallet platform, is rebranding in an effort to avoid the possibility of being wrongly associated with the Islamic militant group ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and Syria), which has been involved in the deaths of Americans and citizens of other nations, including the recent public execution of American journalist, James Foley.

The change will take place in “a few weeks” according to the company’s homepage.

The CEO of Isis, Michael Abbott, explained in a note regarding the change that “However coincidental, we have no desire to share a name with this group and our hearts go out to those affected by this violence.” Abbott also added that only the name is changing, but everything else about the mobile wallet app will remain the same.

In the next few weeks, the Softcard app will be launched. Once it has been released, users of the portable payment system can update it as they usually would and once they do, their Isis Wallet will simply become SoftCard. Users can still expect the same services and features they are used to that enable them to securely store their financial information and make in-store purchases with a tap of their smartphones. “Your current Isis Wallet will continue to work as it always has,” Abbott says.

The CEO also explained the reasons behind why the name Softcard was selected. According to Abbott, what the company wanted was a name and “visual identity that had the power, flexibility and simplicity to define our category.”

Isis – soon to be Softcard – isn’t the only mobile wallet making news.

Amazon is one of the most recent companies to enter the mobile payments market with Amazon Wallet. However, at present, that app only stores reward and gift cards which can be scanned during purchasing.

In addition, the Isis mobile wallet name change announcement occurred almost a week prior to Apple unveiling details regarding its mobile payments service, Apple Pay, which was revealed by the company on September 9. Apple’s new payment system also uses NFC technology and will only be available on its new smartphones the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus.