The mobile phone will be soon a payment device for many. It has become so in many ways in Japan and Korea. USA and Europe are lagging behind but things are about to change. Mobile marketing is growing in importance everyday. In the near future for purchases made on-line, you need only use your mobile phone.
The European telecom giant Telefonica claims to have a system ready with a special SIM card to make payments. Everything from groceries to train tickets can be paid. It could be a reality by the time of the London 2012 Olympics. The credit card company VISA, which happens to be a sponsor of the Olympics, has already conducted one trial in London with O2, a Telefonica subsidiary. VISA asserts the response they found as very positive. VISA claims its Java based payment application to be extremely secure. In the case of a handset being stolen or lost, the payment facility can be remotely disabled .
Anyway in the future the mobile phone will be put to more use as a payment tool instead of cash or cheques. As the system evolves, more bankers, retailers, carriers, phone manufacturers and organisations will pool in their resources and technology. Smartphones are also now being used as medical devices.
One of the largest makers of locks - Assa Abloy AB, is using  a radio technology called Near Field Communication to enable a radio equipped door lock at a Swedish Hotel, on a trial basis. This kind of system is also being tried out with smartphones by car manufacturers presently.
In the USA the deal between AT&T, the American phone giant, and the mobile phone payment provider BOKU, could change credit/debit payment methods in the near future, having an impact in commercial development and economic development.?