The introduction of mobile payments solutions in the U.S. has moved at a snail’s pace at best – due in large part to the fact that mobile companies, credit card issuers and financial institutions aren’t quite sure how to play together.

No one’s done it before.

But, with the introduction of a new contactless card in the U.K., we may be witnessing the development of a model partnership between a card issuer and mobile network operator – one that serves as a door opener for similar deals in the U.S.

The cobranded contactless credit card is a product of the newly formed relationship between British issuer Barclaycard and mobile-network operator Orange U.K.

In an interview with PaymentsSource, a Mercator Advisory Group analyst called the card’s rollout a “first step toward finding a solution to the business-model question that has long plagued the near-field communication (NFC) mobile payments.”

Throw in the fact that Mastercard also has a hand in the product (the card relies on the issuer’s PayPass application), and a U.S. look-alike product seems pretty feasible.

Stay tuned… it’s going to be a great story to watch unfold.