Rumor has it that Google has a big announcement planned for Thursday.
According to a report published late Tuesday from Reuters, sources close to the Internet search giant say Google will unveil a new mobile payment system this week.
Given what little is known of the rumored forthcoming service, Google will likely enable consumers to pay at checkout with their mobile phones instead of credit or debit cards.
The mobile payments system will run on the Android operating system and be available on phones from Sprint Nextel Corp.
If inside sources prove as knowledgeable as they sound, Google will partner with MasterCard Inc, the globe’s second-largest credit and debit card processing network, to make the mobile payments system happen.
In March, the Wall Street Journal reported that Google had been in talks with the likes of both MasterCard and Citigroup to lay the groundwork for what is expected to be unveiled tomorrow.
It has now signed up retail partners Macy’s Inc, American Eagle Outfitters Inc and Subway, though it is unclear if the project will be launched nationwide or just in New York initially, the Journal cited sources as saying Tuesday.
Google, however, can only do so much at this point to keep the project covert until its formal announcement. The company has already invited select reporters to a “partner event” on Thursday in New York. Google says the occasion will provide a platform for the company “to demonstrate its latest innovations.”
