SAN FRANCISCO:

TASER International, the maker of electrical weapons for police officers, is changing its name to Axon as it pushes further into the software business.

The Axon name comes from the business unit that sells police body cameras, patrol car cameras and the software for managing the hours of digital footage they generate.

In a gamble that police departments will sign up for paid software subscriptions, the company is offering a free body camera to police officers in addition to a year of free access to Evidence.com, its online software for managing video and other evidence.

TASER still gets the bulk of its revenue from selling its weapons, which use electrical current to immobilize targets. Last year, $202.6 million of its $268.2 million in revenue came from its weapons segment, mostly in the form of replacement cartridges. (RTRS)