by Alison Storm | 08/5/10

Soon you may not have to carry your credit card and your smartphone. Instead your smartphone will take the place of your credit card. According to a report by Business Week, there's a venture in the works between AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile that would develop a payment system for smartphones. Business Week got their information from three people with direct knowledge of the plan and say that the program will be tested in a few major cities including Atlanta. "This is definitely a game changer," industry consultant Richard K. Crone told Business Week.

Many of the details are still under wraps, but all you would need to make a purchase at a store is your cell phone. Discover Financial Services is apparently the company that would process the payments and manage the accounts. The move would definitely create increased competition in the credit card market, which has long been dominated by Visa and MasterCard.

It's good news for the retail industry. It's often businesses that get stuck with hefty processing fees for those paying with credit cards. "We have long argued that real competition is missing from today's payments market," Brian Dodge of the Retail Industry Leaders Assn. told  Business Week.

Would you use your smartphone to make payments?