Your company’s road warriors now have a simple, cheap solution to taking credit card payments in the field using just their mobile phone or PDA. The catch: The service is being offered by AT&T.

The company’s launching the service that’s aimed at small and midsize companies with reps who need to process credit card payments on the go (think personnel making a service call who don’t have to be equipped with expensive new card readers and other equipment just to accept a client or customer’s fee).

AT&T’s new service uses software from Apriva, a manufacturer of wireless payment devices.

Cost: starts at $14.85 per smartphone, in addition to monthly voice and data costs.

Apriva has two apps that mobile workers can use. AprivaPay, is browser-based and allows processing a credit or debit card transaction using the mobile phone’s web browser.

AprivaPay Professional has more bells and whistles, including software that has to be added to the phone. It can be integrated with a credit card reader device and a device for printing receipts. For now, AT&T is offering the AprivaPay Professional service for download to Windows Mobile devices, but it plans to add Android, iPhone and BlackBerry versions soon.

The benefits are obvious. Businesses get paid faster, payments are authorized and secure, and reps avoid having to lug extra equipment around with them just to accept payment.

But of course, there’s still AT&T involved.

Tags: Apriva, AprivaPay, AprivaPay Professional, AT&T, credit card, mobile phone, payment