Isis Changes Name to SoftcardIsis Changes Name to Softcard

Mobile payment joint venture Isis said Wednesday that it is changing its name to Softcard.

The firm had said in July that it was planning to rebrand. The venture doesn't want to be associated with the Islamic State -- also known as ISIS -- group, which has recently beheaded two US journalists and is responsible for the deaths of thousands in Iraq and Syria.

"However coincidental, we have no desire to share a name with this group, and our hearts go out to those affected by this violence," writes CEO Michael Abbott in a blog post. (See Isis (the Mobile Wallet One) to Rebrand.)

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The firm is expecting to launch an updated Softcard mobile wallet application in the next few weeks. "Because we've chosen to move swiftly, small traces of Isis will be visible for a short time," Abbott notes.

— Dan Jones, Mobile Editor, Light Reading