As in its next use? I keep hearing how it can do so much more then just a payment system. What and when will we see them?
When people say this, they are usually referring to the Bitcoin protocol, not the currency (bitcoins with a small b) managed by the network.
Check out Namecoin, FreeSpeechMe, Ethereum, Mastercoin, Open Transactions, and others for how it will be used in the very near future.