Starbucks Wireless Access: Goodbye T-Mobile, Hello AT&T!

[Pete Paxton]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080211...tarbucks_at_t_4

"Starbucks Corp. is teaming up with AT&T Inc. and will start offering a mix of free and paid wireless Internet service in more than 7,000 of its U.S. coffee shops beginning this spring. The world's largest specialty coffee retailer's move ends a six-year partnership T-Mobile. Starbucks said Monday it will give customers that use its Starbucks purchase card two hours of free wireless access per day. After that, it will cost $3.99 for a two-hour session. Monthly memberships will cost $19.99 and include access to any of AT&T's 70,000 hot spots worldwide. People who already use AT&T as their Internet service provider will have unlimited Wi-Fi access at Starbucks."

So if you're an AT&T customer and have always resented seeing that T-Mobile logo in your favorite Starbucks coffee cafe, your time is coming. It will soon be your turn to receive free internet access while sipping your white chocolate mocha. So if you're with T-Mobile, how do you feel about this? Are you sorry to see the partnership end or did you not use it much in the first place? And those with AT&T, are you overjoyed or could you care less?

[Pete Paxton]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080211...tarbucks_at_t_4

"Starbucks Corp. is teaming up with AT&T Inc. and will start offering a mix of free and paid wireless Internet service in more than 7,000 of its U.S. coffee shops beginning this spring. The world's largest specialty coffee retailer's move ends a six-year partnership T-Mobile. Starbucks said Monday it will give customers that use its Starbucks purchase card two hours of free wireless access per day. After that, it will cost $3.99 for a two-hour session. Monthly memberships will cost $19.99 and include access to any of AT&T's 70,000 hot spots worldwide. People who already use AT&T as their Internet service provider will have unlimited Wi-Fi access at Starbucks."

So if you're an AT&T customer and have always resented seeing that T-Mobile logo in your favorite Starbucks coffee cafe, your time is coming. It will soon be your turn to receive free internet access while sipping your white chocolate mocha. So if you're with T-Mobile, how do you feel about this? Are you sorry to see the partnership end or did you not use it much in the first place? And those with AT&T, are you overjoyed or could you care less?

[Rocco Augusto]

Free is a lot better than $29.99USD a month (the T-Mobile WiFi Access cost last time I checked). I can't imagine why anyone would ever sit in a Starbucks longer than 2 hours to actually have to pay for service.

[JamesM]

Um, not so much on the T-Mobile dumpage...

http://jkontherun.blogs.com/jkonther...ucks-adds.html

http://www.starbucks.com/aboutus/pressdesc.asp?id=826 (look halfway down the page).

[byteme]

I still frequent Starbucks and as an iPhone user it might mean I spend a bit more time in the store.

[Jerry Raia]

I have both of them. I don't care. I use the networks they provide so I don't have to sit in a Starbucks. Though I still do.

[kerrins]

What is a "Starbucks purchase card?" Is that the same as one of those cards you put money on and usually give as a gift? Why do I have to use one of those to get the free two hours?