Google Acquires Softcard, Carriers Will Now Preload Wallet On Their Devices

For the past few weeks we have heard rumors that Google might acquire Softcard, a payments service owned by major carriers which was previously known as ISIS, and now the company has made the official announcement. Google has indeed acquired Softcard and as a result Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile will now preload Google Wallet on their devices.

Even though Google Wallet has been around since 2011 it hasn’t been hugely successful. On the other hand Apple launched its new payments service just months ago and already Apple Pay is enjoying widespread adoption by both merchants and financial institutions.

The carriers were previously trying to make Softcard happen and they were averse to preloading Google Wallet on their devices. Softcard didn’t enjoy much popularity either so now they’re joining forces with Google which has agreed to pick up their service in the process.

To make Google Wallet better the company will bring in some technology and intellectual property from Softcard. As far as the service is concerned, “for now” Softcard will continue to function, but it might not take too long before it inevitably bites the dust and props up Google Wallet.

A recent report suggested that Google is working on a new payment system codenamed “Plaso,” the company says in today’s announcement that there is a lot more to come, presumably it might reveal more about its efforts to become a major player in the payments arena at I/O 2015.

Adnan Farooqui
Categories: Cellphones
Tags: Google, softcard