Softcard’s mobile payments app is shutting down in h after tech sale to

BY GreenBot Staff

Published 5 Mar 2015

Softcard is closing up shop for good, leaving you with one fewer option for making payments with your phone. 

After earlier announcing it had sold some of its technology to , Softcard now says it will shut down the app for good on h 31. As part of the buyout, the three backers of Softcard—Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile—said they will load llet onto Android phones running KitKat or higher later this year. 

The major collateral damage hits ndows one, which has no tap-to-pay service is quickly losing its banking apps, with Bank of America the latest to jump ship. Given the platform’s paltry marketshare, it’s unlikely will build a llet app for ndows.

‘s buyout is an indication of how intense the competition is becoming in the mobile payments space. Apple y quickly shot up in popularity, triggering to revamp its own strategy by announcing Android y at Mobile rld Congress.

The biggest competitor now for is Samsung y, which will debut alongside the Galaxy S6 S6 ge, promising to work with any store register that lets you swipe a card.

The story behind the story: Softcard launched in 2013 as Isis, but later changed its name after the rise of the terrorist group with the same acronym. It never really took off, even with its backing by three of the four major U.S. mobile carriers. The major annoyance to Android users came when some phones stores disabled llet as part of the effort to promote Softcard. ‘s goal is for Android y to be more universal not get held back by third-party wrangling.