BillMyParents Changes Its Name to Match Its Product — Again

BillMyParents, a company that sells prepaid cards that allow parents and teens to monitor spending, is changing its name to The SpendSmart Payments Company, matching the name of its SpendSmart prepaid card.

This is the latest of multiple name changes for the company, which used to be called IdeaEdge Inc. IdeaEdge was already trying on a new name, Socialwise Inc., when it launched the BillMyParents alternative payment product in 2009. Then in 2011, the company renamed itself again, calling itself BillMyParents Inc.

The latest rebranding, announced March 4, is part of a larger repositioning strategy that's designed to move the company beyond the teen prepaid segment. The company also changed its ticker to SSPC, from the earlier BMPI.

"The SpendSmart Payments Company name more accurately reflects our ability and desire to serve a broader customer base driven by our company's core foundation of enabling responsible spending," said Mike McCoy, the company's chairman and CEO, in a release.

"Expanding beyond the teen segment, we intend to serve several under-penetrated demographics. We also intend to pursue opportunities in international markets," he added.

The company's new name matches its main product, the SpendSmart MasterCard, a reloadable prepaid card that allows parents and teenagers to monitor spending in real time. The company signed a deal last year with pop idol Justin Bieber to promote the card.

The earlier BillMyParents product was an online payment system for teens that required parents' approval before any purchase was approved. The company shifted its focus to the prepaid card product in 2010.