Aiming at Rivals, Starbucks Will Offer Free Wi-Fi

[kpete]

Source: New York Times

Aiming at Rivals, Starbucks Will Offer Free Wi-Fi

Many coffee shops try to discourage people from buying a cup of coffee and then lingering for hours to use the free Internet access. Starbucks will soon encourage them to stay as long as they want.

The company said on Monday that as of July 1, its stores in the United States would offer free Wi-Fi, via AT&T, that anyone can reach with a single click. In case customers run out of distractions on the Web, Starbucks is giving them even more reason to sit and browse, offering free online articles, music, videos and local information through a partnership with Yahoo.

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“Starbucks hit back,” said Chris Brogan, president of New Marketing Labs, a social media marketing agency, who blogs about working on the go. “They said, ‘Not only do we have free Wi-Fi, but we’re going to offer this huge raft of digital products you can get while you’re here, and you like our coffee better anyway.’ ”

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/15/technology/15starbux.html?ref=business

[jaxx]

1. That will go well with the guns.

:shrug:

[European Historian]

2. No amount of Wifi

from Starbucks can compensate for the acrid, bitter coffee they serve. Not to mention their anti-union activities.

The local coffee houses around me, however, have fabulous shade grown, organic coffee and they've always had free Wifi to boot.

[Aristus]

3. Welcome to DU, European Historian!

:hi:

I actually liked Starbuck's Coffee. It was when they caved to the gun-crazies in the NRA that I patronized one of their shops for the last time. I didn't storm the barricades, and I didn't encourage anybody to join me in a boycott; I just voted with my feet.

No way in hell I'm going to sit in a Starbuck's knowing that there might be some gun nut with a short fuse getting ready to pop off on the whole place because he didn't get sprinkles on his Mocha Frappaccino.

I live in Washington State. Plenty of small-business coffee stands around where I can take my business.

[enlightenment]

4. One hundred percent agreement with that statement!

"Charbucks" - they could be toasting rabbit pellets because it certainly doesn't taste like coffee. They had to come up with the additives, creating 2000 calorie 'drinks', just to cover the foul taste of the stuff they brew.