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Early Addition
In an attempt to pump up its shrinking customer base, starting today Starbucks will offer two hours of free Wi-Fi per day. Well, free for anyone who puts at least $5 onto a reloadable Starbucks Card and registers online for the Starbucks Rewards Card program. Rewards program members get other perks too: free syrup and milk options with drinks, free refills on coffee and one free beverage with the purchase of a pound of coffee beans.
After the free two hours expire, customers can buy additional time at $3.99 per two-hour session; monthly membership is also sold for $19.99 per month and comes with access to any of AT&T’s 70,000 “hot spots” worldwide. And good news for Starbucks employees: The company won’t be charging you for Wi-Fi at all – should you want to come into work and use it on your day off.
The two hours of free Wi-Fi comes with the company’s change from T-Mobile to AT&T, though T-Mobile HotSpot subscribers will still be able to access Starbucks locations. While Gizmodo’s Matt Buchanan is glad to take the freebie, he “finds it strange to suddenly see a Wi-Fi war in 2008, when we should be talking about mobile broadband, 4G—something a little less five years ago.”
Photo of mobile desktop user courtesy Imrov Everywhere.
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It's not that strange. Figuring out the constraints of the business model and how to boost adoption for services takes a little time, market testing, and thinking. Especially, when we're talking about big telecom.
More importantly, it probably took SBUX a few years to get out of their contract with TMobile, and ATT's "give to get" probably included this promo to boost service uptake (understanding the relatively low churn on a monthly account once you can convert x% of users across a very large base on people who will do a free install) and to give SBUX a spike in the take rates/use of their cards, not to mention a quarterly boost in same store sales - which will make the new CEO look good.
Besides, who is Matt Buchanan (Mel Kiper, Jr.) anyway? He never played a down of football in his life. These tech commentators think they are so wise yet they get paid to sit on the sidelines and take pot shots. If he's so bright, why doesn't he go out and help a big company launch a 4G service? Maybe it's because companies still haven't figured out how to recoup the huge capital cost of upgrading the networks...
and now you can take that money and use it for the smoke tax. which by the way, if anyone is interested, there are about 30 guys walking around herald square selling cigarrettes for $5 a pack.
That's a pretty bulky laptop she's got there.
That picture's a classic!