Isis Mobile Wallet goes live nationwide, offers freebies

After a long period of trials, the joint venture between Verizon Wireless, AT&T, and T-Mobile is finally broadly available.

November 14, 2013 5:25 AM PST

Pay with your smartphone at the cash register with the Isis mobile payment platform.

(Credit: Isis)

The wireless carrier's mobile payment initiative, Isis Mobile Wallet, finally goes live nationwide, bringing another way for consumers to use their phones to pay for goods and services.

It's been a long time coming for Isis, which went through the work of lining up partners, building a mobile-payment platform, and going through trials over the last few years. The Isis Mobile Wallet is available for select Isis-compatible smartphones -- notably not the iPhone -- and comes with a few financial incentives to get users on board.

Related stories

• Square lets you send money using e-mail


• Isis' plan to jump-start mobile payments: 1M free smoothies


• Isis, American Express want to turn your phone into a wallet


• Mobile payment provider Isis readies national rollout


• Study: People don't use or understand digital wallets

Isis, jointly run by Verizon Wireless, AT&T, and T-Mobile, is just one of many companies striving to serve as the digital wallet for consumers, following in the footsteps of Google Wallet and PayPal, among others. Like Google Wallet, Isis employs a technology called Near-Field Communication, or NFC, which enables customers to wave their phone at special cash registers to pay for a soda or cab ride. The business is attractive because of the opportunity to have a presence in a consumer's wallet.

The idea of a digital wallet contained in a smartphone has been around for a while, although the implementation has lacked broad consumer interest. Apple's reluctance to add NFC to its iPhones adds another wrinkle. An Isis representative said that iPhone support would come at a later time.

To help spur adoption, Isis is touting several incentives. Isis Mobile Wallet users can use My Coke Rewards and Isis to get three free drinks for free at select vending machines, while Jamba Juice is giving away 1 million free smoothies to Isis users. Purchases made from an American Express Serve account through the Isis wallet are eligible for a 20 percent discount (up to $200).

Interested customers will have to get an enhanced SIM card to run Isis. They will also have to download the app on Google Play or get signed up at retail stores run by the three carriers.