NEWS: Starbucks: Forget T-Mobile, get (free) WiFi with AT&T

<http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20080211-starbucks-forget-t-mobile-get-free-wifi-with-att.html>

At Starbucks, T-Mobile is out and AT&T is in, at least when it comes
to WiFi. AT&T and Starbucks announced their new partnership this
morning, saying that the carrier plans to offer a variety of service
offerings at 7,000 Starbucks locations in the US. Best of all, many
customers will be able to access the service for free (as in beer),
with paid offerings as low as $3.99 for two hours of use.

AT&T says that, beginning this spring, anyone who uses a Starbucks
Card (a prepaid gift card, like one you would give to a friend) will
be able to get up to two hours of free WiFi service per day at any
Starbucks location with WiFi service. Better yet, if you're an AT&T
broadband or U-verse subscriber, you'll be able to use unlimited WiFi
at Starbucks for free. For everyone else, paid service will begin at
$3.99 per two-hour session, and monthly membership will go for $19.99
per month. Comparatively, T-Mobile's offerings were limited to $9.99
per day and between $19.99 and $39.99 per month (depending on whether
you were also a T-Mobile wireless subscriber and are willing to sign
a contract to lock in a lower rate).

Unfortunately, AT&T wireless customers--such as the plethora of
iPhone owners who frequent Starbucks--don't have any special access
as of yet. "This offer is for AT&T broadband customers who can access
WiFi in the stores over a WiFi-enabled device. [iPhone users] who are
not broadband subscribers can't access for free at this time," AT&T
spokesperson Brad Mays told Ars, although the company says that it
plans to expand its Starbucks benefits to those subscribers "soon."

The move is surprising, given how strong a relationship Starbucks
appeared to have with T-Mobile in the past. In September, Apple
announced a partnership with Starbucks and T-Mobile that would allow
iPhone and iPod touch owners to hop on T-Mobile's HotSpots for free
in order to access the iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store. (Mays told us that
the iTunes Wi-Fi Store partnership and rollout would continue under
AT&T's WiFi service.) And T-Mobile has used its partnership with
Starbucks to market some of its own services--namely its
newly-launched UMA (cell-to-WiFi) service called HotSpots@Home.
Customers with supported phones could switch between the cell network
and WiFi HotSpots to save on minutes and a get better signal.

Starbucks and AT&T do, however, acknowledge that there were many
loyal T-Mobile HotSpot customers, and they are offering a special
deal to those who subscribe to T-Mobile's service. "T-Mobile HotSpot
customers will be able to continue to access WiFi services at no
additional cost, through an agreement between AT&T and T-Mobile,"
Starbucks said in a statement. So if you pay for HotSpot coverage on
your T-Mobile plan (particularly for the aforementioned UMA service),
you should still be able to continue using it as usual on the new
Starbucks network.

[MORE]

--
Best regards, FAQ FOR AT&T/CINGULAR WIRELESS:
John Navas <http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/AT&T_Wireless_FAQ>

In article <(E-Mail Removed)>, spamfilter1
@navasgroup.com says...
> AT&T says that, beginning this spring, anyone who uses a Starbucks
> Card (a prepaid gift card, like one you would give to a friend) will
> be able to get up to two hours of free WiFi service per day at any
> Starbucks location with WiFi service. Better yet, if you're an AT&T
> broadband or U-verse subscriber, you'll be able to use unlimited WiFi
> at Starbucks for free.
>
All I can say is...YYYYYYEEEEESSSSS!!!!!!
--
Jud
Dallas TX USA

In article <(E-Mail Removed). net>,
Jud Hardcastle <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:

> In article <(E-Mail Removed)>, spamfilter1
> @navasgroup.com says...
> > AT&T says that, beginning this spring, anyone who uses a Starbucks
> > Card (a prepaid gift card, like one you would give to a friend) will
> > be able to get up to two hours of free WiFi service per day at any
> > Starbucks location with WiFi service. Better yet, if you're an AT&T
> > broadband or U-verse subscriber, you'll be able to use unlimited WiFi
> > at Starbucks for free.
> >
> All I can say is...YYYYYYEEEEESSSSS!!!!!!

Coffee Bean/Tea Leaf has better Coffee and already free WiFi for ATT.

--
To reply by email, remove the word "space"

On 2/11/08 9:53 PM, in article
labolide-(E-Mail Removed), "Kurt"
<(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:

> In article <(E-Mail Removed). net>,
> Jud Hardcastle <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:
>
>> In article <(E-Mail Removed)>, spamfilter1
>> @navasgroup.com says...
>>> AT&T says that, beginning this spring, anyone who uses a Starbucks
>>> Card (a prepaid gift card, like one you would give to a friend) will
>>> be able to get up to two hours of free WiFi service per day at any
>>> Starbucks location with WiFi service. Better yet, if you're an AT&T
>>> broadband or U-verse subscriber, you'll be able to use unlimited WiFi
>>> at Starbucks for free.
>>>
>> All I can say is...YYYYYYEEEEESSSSS!!!!!!
>
> Coffee Bean/Tea Leaf has better Coffee and already free WiFi for ATT.
WHO?!?

>>>>> "JH" == Jud Hardcastle <(E-Mail Removed)> writes:

JH> In article <(E-Mail Removed)>,
JH> spamfilter1 @navasgroup.com says...
>> AT&T says that, beginning this spring, anyone who uses a
>> Starbucks Card (a prepaid gift card, like one you would give to
>> a friend) will be able to get up to two hours of free WiFi
>> service per day at any Starbucks location with WiFi
>> service. Better yet, if you're an AT&T broadband or U-verse
>> subscriber, you'll be able to use unlimited WiFi at Starbucks
>> for free.
>>
JH> All I can say is...YYYYYYEEEEESSSSS!!!!!!

Most I can say is....YYYYYAAAWWWWNNN. What a complicated bloody
arrangement. Why don't they simply put up free wireless and be done
with it. If I need to get coffee I simply find an independent cafe
with free wireless....much simpler and usually better coffee.

--
"Thank you for sending me a copy of your book; I'll waste no time
reading it."
-Moses Hadas

In article <C3D70D76.45262%(E-Mail Removed)>,
George Kerby <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:

> On 2/11/08 9:53 PM, in article
> labolide-(E-Mail Removed), "Kurt"
> <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:
>
> > In article <(E-Mail Removed). net>,
> > Jud Hardcastle <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:
> >
> >> In article <(E-Mail Removed)>, spamfilter1
> >> @navasgroup.com says...
> >>> AT&T says that, beginning this spring, anyone who uses a Starbucks
> >>> Card (a prepaid gift card, like one you would give to a friend) will
> >>> be able to get up to two hours of free WiFi service per day at any
> >>> Starbucks location with WiFi service. Better yet, if you're an AT&T
> >>> broadband or U-verse subscriber, you'll be able to use unlimited WiFi
> >>> at Starbucks for free.
> >>>
> >> All I can say is...YYYYYYEEEEESSSSS!!!!!!
> >
> > Coffee Bean/Tea Leaf has better Coffee and already free WiFi for ATT.
> WHO?!?

Not East Coast.

--
To reply by email, remove the word "space"

On Feb 11, 12:58 pm, John Navas <spamfilt...@navasgroup.com> wrote:
> <http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20080211-starbucks-forget-t-mobi...>
>
> At Starbucks, T-Mobile is out and AT&T is in, at least when it comes
> to WiFi. AT&T and Starbucks announced their new partnership this
> morning, saying that the carrier plans to offer a variety of service
> offerings at 7,000 Starbucks locations in the US. Best of all, many
> customers will be able to access the service for free (as in beer),
> with paid offerings as low as $3.99 for two hours of use.
>
> AT&T says that, beginning this spring, anyone who uses a Starbucks
> Card (a prepaid gift card, like one you would give to a friend) will
> be able to get up to two hours of free WiFi service per day at any
> Starbucks location with WiFi service. Better yet, if you're an AT&T
> broadband or U-verse subscriber, you'll be able to use unlimited WiFi
> at Starbucks for free. For everyone else, paid service will begin at
> $3.99 per two-hour session, and monthly membership will go for $19.99
> per month. Comparatively, T-Mobile's offerings were limited to $9.99
> per day and between $19.99 and $39.99 per month (depending on whether
> you were also a T-Mobile wireless subscriber and are willing to sign
> a contract to lock in a lower rate).
>
> Unfortunately, AT&T wireless customers--such as the plethora of
> iPhone owners who frequent Starbucks--don't have any special access
> as of yet. "This offer is for AT&T broadband customers who can access
> WiFi in the stores over a WiFi-enabled device. [iPhone users] who are
> not broadband subscribers can't access for free at this time," AT&T
> spokesperson Brad Mays told Ars, although the company says that it
> plans to expand its Starbucks benefits to those subscribers "soon."
>
> The move is surprising, given how strong a relationship Starbucks
> appeared to have with T-Mobile in the past. In September, Apple
> announced a partnership with Starbucks and T-Mobile that would allow
> iPhone and iPod touch owners to hop on T-Mobile's HotSpots for free
> in order to access the iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store. (Mays told us that
> the iTunes Wi-Fi Store partnership and rollout would continue under
> AT&T's WiFi service.) And T-Mobile has used its partnership with
> Starbucks to market some of its own services--namely its
> newly-launched UMA (cell-to-WiFi) service called HotSpots@Home.
> Customers with supported phones could switch between the cell network
> and WiFi HotSpots to save on minutes and a get better signal.
>
> Starbucks and AT&T do, however, acknowledge that there were many
> loyal T-Mobile HotSpot customers, and they are offering a special
> deal to those who subscribe to T-Mobile's service. "T-Mobile HotSpot
> customers will be able to continue to access WiFi services at no
> additional cost, through an agreement between AT&T and T-Mobile,"
> Starbucks said in a statement. So if you pay for HotSpot coverage on
> your T-Mobile plan (particularly for the aforementioned UMA service),
> you should still be able to continue using it as usual on the new
> Starbucks network.
>
> [MORE]
>
> --
> Best regards, FAQ FOR AT&T/CINGULAR WIRELESS:
> John Navas <http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/AT&T_Wireless_FAQ>

An odd thing happened today. I used to be able to connect to the T-
mobile hotspot via my blackberry with wifi. This had worked at both
Starbucks and Borders, but now doesn't work at either location. Now it
asks me to sign in. I spent some time with Hot Spot support, which
sent me to Blackberry support, which admits they knew nothing about
Hot Spots. In retrospect, I thing the Hot Spot support was the right
group to bug.

I'll try in the AM when I can probably track down a supervisor.