AT&T-Verizon-T Mobile will invest $100 Million to compete with Google Wallet

August 30, 2011

AT&T-Verizon-T Mobile will invest $100 Million to compete with Google Wallet 3

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Verizon Wireless, AT&T, and T-Mobile USA will invest more than $100 million in Isis, a mobile payment system, which will pit them in a head to head battle with Google Wallet.

$100 million may only be the tip of the iceberg because they could invest a lot more if they are successful in attracting banks and merchants. The mobile payment market is expected to reach $670 billion by 2015 according to Juniper Research, and is expected to hit $240 billion this year.

Isis expects to launch in key markets by early to mid 2012. They currently have partnerships with Visa, MasterCard, Discover Financial Services, and American Express.

Not only will consumers be able to make mobile payments, but they will be able redeem coupons via their mobile devices.

We know that Google Wallet is coming and it will be a huge competitor. Isis will rely on its carrier partners' existing distribution network and customer relationships. They could preinstall the Isis software on their phones or push handset makers to adopt it.

This is one area that will show significant growth over the next few years. It will be interesting to see how it all pans out. I will be happy to get rid of my wallet.

[via bloomberg]

Robert Nazarian Author

Robert lives in upstate New York where he was born and raised. Technology was always his passion. His first computer was a Radio Shack TRS80 Color that used a cassette tape to save programs, and his first laptop was a Toshiba T1200FB that sported a CGA greyscale screen and two 720kb floppy drives (no hardrive). From the early 90’s through late 2011, he only owned Motorola phones starting with the MircroTAC all the way through to the Droid X. He broke that streak when he bought the Galaxy Nexus. Now he's sporting a Galaxy Note 4, and absolutely loves it. He has a wonderful wife and a 6 year old son. In his free time he enjoys sports, movies, TV, working out, and trying to keep up with the rapid fast world of technology.

2 comments

Curt says:

August 30, 2011 at 3:29 PM

There is no way to eliminate the wallet. You need to have someplace to put your drivers license/ID card. There is no way that you will be able to persuade states to allow digital copies as a substitute for the real thing.

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Erik Neu says:

August 30, 2011 at 1:05 PM

Although it would perhaps be nice not to have to carry a wallet, that’s pretty low on my personal hierarchy of wishes. In general, my personal payments system works just fine. Almost every store I shop in accepts my two preferred means of payment: cash, or bank cards. Thus, as a consumer and technologist, I am only interest in new payment methods if they meet the following two tests:

1) They take cost out of the system. I don’t want new for the sake of new and cool. The new thing has to be inherently more cost-efficient.

2) They have to cut costs for consumers. Lower swipe fees (or “wave fees” maybe ;) ).

#1 is a necessary but not sufficient condition for #2. I am tired of stuff that is new, but more expensive. I am particularly thinking of service charges to ticketing, such as Ticketron.

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