ISIS, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, is a jihadist militant group active in Iraq and Syria. Born out of al-Qaeda in Iraq in 2013, ISIS is known for its brutal rule in territories which it controls.
Isis is a mobile payments company born out of a partnership between AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon that competes with the likes of Google Wallet and Paypal. Like other mobile wallets, Isis lets you add payment options and use NFC to swipe to pay.
One of these is a terrorist organization that’s all over the news lately, and the other is a poor app with a very unfortunate name.
It’s a bad time to be called Isis.
Isis CEO Michael Abbott can see that nothing is going to change the unfortunate association with a terror group, and has decided to rebrand.
“However coincidental, we have no interest in sharing a name with a group whose name has become synonymous with violence and our hearts go out to those who are suffering. As a company, we have made the decision to rebrand. Changing a brand is never easy, but we know this is the right decision – for our company, our partners and our customers. We are actively working on a new brand, and I’ll share more with you as our journey progresses in the coming months,” he says in a blog post.
Though it would’ve been impossible for a company engendered in 2011 to foresee events taking place in 2013, it’s a strong reminder to any startup looking to get off the ground – things can go very, very bad for your brand name.
Image via Isis (app)