“Cash, credit, or PayPal?” You may hear these words spoken at a retail shop near you very soon. The online payment giant, PayPal (owned by Ebay) has announced that it plans to expand PayPal services to the real world within the next year. PayPal has not said which retailer will offer online payment services first, but company representatives have said that it is a “major” retailer.

PayPal is one of the biggest online payment options, and it’s also the one that many consumers use on a regular basis. In fact, some people rely solely on PayPal. For these people, having the option to pay using a PayPal account will be priceless. Right now, people who use PayPal more than a regular bank account must transfer funds before purchasing any items inside of regular retail stores. Needless to say, all eyes on are PayPal at the time of this writing.

What PayPal Has Said

If you use PayPal regularly, you may be wondering how this new service will work, whether or not it will cost anything, and how you can go about signing up for this new PayPal option. Well, these are all things that PayPal is keeping under wraps for now. The company wants users to know that a real work version of PayPal will be arriving soon, but details of this arrival are sparse.

PayPal has come to recognize that there is potential outside of the online world. Of course, offering retailers a PayPal option means that the company will soon be fighting with major credit card companies and other transaction companies. Interestingly, the powers that be at PayPal don’t seem to be concerned. In fact, PayPal recognizes that growth will be slow, but that many people around the world are already familiar with the transaction giant.

What About Those Infamous PayPal Problems?

There’s no doubt that PayPal has a lot of kinks to work out. There are some infamous PayPal problems that many users have encountered throughout the years. The random inspection, freezing of funds, and shutting down of accounts has hindered many fine and upstanding citizens from using PayPal. The fees that PayPal charges have grown tremendously over the years, and many online retailers are currently looking for other options.

The list of PayPal problems stretches on for miles. The question is, will PayPal fix these problems before the service is offered at regular retail shops? If not, some retailers (even major ones) may find themselves frustrated with these PayPal problems. It would be wise of Ebay to take a close look at the various PayPal links prior to spreading the word about a real world PayPal offering.

When to Expect Brick and Mortar Service

As mentioned, PayPal hasn’t said much about its new brick and mortar offerings. But, the company has said that consumers can expect a big announcement sometime in 2012. Presumably, PayPal will seek to target a large company such as Walmart or other large retailer. If you have a PayPal account not, I suggest you hold onto that account until PayPal makes its foray into the real world.