Remember a couple of years ago when Google Wallet looked poised to launch a wave of mobile payment platforms powered by NFC? Well that didn’t really work out as planned since Google’s first crack at mobile payments has largely flopped. But apparently no one told America’s wireless carriers that there’s little interest in NFC-based mobile wallets — or that there’s something much better on the way — because they’ve just come out with Isis, a mobile payment platform designed to be their alternative to Google Wallet.
Per CNET, Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile announced on Thursday that Isis will now be available for download on all compatible smartphones. Of course, since Apple’s iPhone doesn’t support NFC this has already eliminated a large pool of potential users for the new service. For this reason, the carriers are putting together several special offers to entice their customers to use Isis, including free sodas at Coke vending machines and discounts of up to 20% on items paid for using an Isis American Express account.
