SXSW is still in full swing in Austin, Texas.  And in major events like this, you are bound to come across the hottest technology, including mobile payments.  But an article on Gigaom stated that mobile payments were amiss at the SXSW citing factors such as free food and beer, and few opportunities to see mobile payments at work.

So is mobile payment technology really as big as we think?  Unless you payed for a pedicab with your debit card, you may have easily missed mobile payments’ presence at SXSW this year.

Panels discuss mobile payment tech

At the SXSW panel last Saturday, Ryan Hughes, the chief marketing officer of Isis, consultant Toni Merschen, and representatives from the digital security firm Gemalto discussed how mobile payment changes the world we live in.

Hughes discussed that unlike previous mobile paymet methods, Isis would allow consumers to consolidate credit cards and customer loyalty cards in a wallet app that they can use to unlock deals when they enter a store.

“We’re not shifting the way that you pay. We’re bringing you an opportunity to transform the way you shop,” Hughes said.

eBay

At SXSW, eBay showcased their latest mobile commerce technologies including their new dongle, PayPal Here, that connects to your iPhone (Android version coming).  eBay launched PayPal Here at a San Francisco event on Thursday, and is now available for select merchants in the US.  The dongle is offered to merchants for free, PayPal takes a percentage for every transaction made with their blue triangle dongle, Square’s latest competitor.

“PayPal Here is the world’s first global mobile payment solution that allows small businesses to accept almost any form of payment,” said David Marcus, PayPal Vice President of Mobile.

“It’s designed to help those merchants make more sales and grow their business with confidence. And it gives them choices. They can accept payments by swiping cards with a fully encrypted thumb-sized card reader, or use a phone camera to scan and process cards and checks. It also allows them to invoice directly from the mobile app and, of course, accept PayPal in a brand new way.”

PayPal is relying on the expoential growth of the mobile platform, anticipating that in the next five years mobile shopping and payments will all be driven by mobile or tablet devices.  People will soon be using their smartphoes or tablets to pay for meals with their “mobile wallet,” or comparing prices from multiple retailers and making a purchase directly from your mobile device.

“Imagine in the next few years being able to walk into a grocery store, hold up your camera phone in the cereal aisle, see instant coupons available, add those coupons into your phone and then pay for everything right on the spot without ever needing to wait in a long line,” said eBay Mobile in an emailed statemet.

“It is not a faraway possibility and eBay intends to push the envelope of innovation when it comes to mobile purchases. For example, RedLaser has now partnered with Toys R Us to offer consumers the ability to research and shop with the option to buy now for either in-store pick-up or home delivery later, all from their mobile devices.”

Intuit GoPayment in the real world

Intuit GoPayment is helping Austin’s own Birds Barbershop by allowing them to accept credit card payments on the go with the use of their dongle that can be connected o their mobile phones.

“Accepting payment by credit cards improves cash flow,” said the report.  “More than two-thirds of GoPayment customers new to credit card processing say they have made sales they would not have gotten without GoPayment.”

It’s a real-world example of Intuit’s platform at work, centering the POS around a mobile device.  This is a necessary and growing trend for retailers and small businesses, a niche Casio is also hoping to cash in on with its debut Android device, the upcoming VX Tablet.