Millions of AT&T DSL subscribers and Starbucks customers soon will get free Wi-Fi access at 7,000 Starbucks locations as part of new deal announced by the two companies Monday. AT&T, the largest provider of broadband in the country, will replace T-Mobile as the hotspot provider for Starbucks. The deal expands an existing partnership, which involved AT&T providing back-end support for services such as connecting Starbucks registers. The terms of the deal were not announced. The transition, which involves swapping out equipment, will begin April 1 and continue through the end of the year. Under the agreement, about 12 million AT&T subscribers who take DSL service at the 1.5-megabit-per-second tier or higher will receive free Wi-Fi access at Starbucks stores. Users will log on with their AT&T Yahoo DSL sign-in to receive service. The addition of Starbucks brings the number of AT&T hotspots to 17,000 in the United States, including McDonald's and Barnes & Noble locations. Last month, AT&T said it was offering most of its DSL subscribers free access to its then-10,000 Wi-Fi hotspots. "Life is about wireless mobility. It's about being connected wherever you are," said AT&T spokesman John Britton. "This is 17,000 free Wi-Fi hotspots. That's a lot of opportunities to stay connected." T-Mobile customers still will be able to log on to the network through a partnership with AT&T. Starbucks customers who buy a prepaid Starbucks card will receive two hours of free service. The card, which can be purchased for $5 or more, must be activated and have a balance to receive free Wi-Fi service. AT&T also is cutting the price of hotspot service for outside users. For two hours, users will pay $3.99. Monthly membership will be sold for $19.99, and will include access to AT&T's 70,000 hotspots around the world. Previously, T-Mobile was charging $6 per hour, $9.99 for a day pass, or $39.99 a month for unlimited access. The partnership is the second headline deal for Starbucks that it hopes will bring in more foot traffic. Apple announced last year that it would extend free Wi-Fi access to its iTunes store to Starbucks customers. "Our new relationship with AT&T gives us the opportunity to expand and enhance the range of digital entertainment experiences for our customers as well as our partners, including the continued rollout of the iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store at Starbucks," said Ken Lombard, president of Starbucks Entertainment. AT&T stock was up 50 cents or 1.37 percent to finish at $36.87 a share Monday. Starbucks shares rose 26 cents, or 1.4 percent, to $18.52. 
First the news from the San Fransisco Chronicle, then my take on the whole marketing mistakes that continues to plague Starbucks:
Once and only once did I pay to log on to the Internet while sitting at a Starbucks. This is one reason why I do not hang out at Starbucks. Why should I pay for something that I can get free at every other coffee shop in town?
Laptop computers are now outselling desktops. Coffee Shops that don't offer free wireless are giving their customers a reason to NOT visit and spend money with them.
They are going through a reorganization effort at Starbucks to try and revive the brand, but switching from one paid service to another paid service is still out of touch with the folks they should be reaching out to.
Now if I lived in Switzerland, I'd have free wireless at Starbucks according to their website:
All Starbucks Coffeehouses in
What do you think?
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Starbucks switches WI-FI providers
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