While mobile payment solutions like Google Wallet are only starting to catch on, a new study suggests that by 2020 they could become the dominant form of payment. The study — conducted by the Pew Internet & American Life Project and Elon University's Imagining the Internet Center — surveyed a total of 1,021 "internet experts and other internet users." It found that 65 percent of those who responded believe that swiping a smartphone as a form of payment will become widely adopted by the end of the decade.
"Why not take the next step? Of course we'll move to even more abstract representations of value."
The rest of the respondents felt that security concerns would be an issue in terms of adoption, though it's important to note that not everyone questioned was an expert — in addition to the researchers and professors who were named, many of the respondents were anonymous. Even still, the results show that people are becoming increasingly comfortable with the concept. This shouldn't be too surprising considering that many of us already rarely use cash thanks to credit and debit cards — though concerns about NFC payment security aren't entirely unfounded.