The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
The Spokesman-Review Newspaper The Spokesman-Review
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883
Current Temperature
55°F
Current Conditions
Overcast clouds
View complete weather report
Subscribe now

Starbucks, AT&T a team

J.J. Geise reads a paper as he treats himself to coffee and a baked good at a Starbucks coffee shop in Seattle on Jan. 25. Associated Press (Associated Press / The Spokesman-Review)
Associated Press The Spokesman-Review
J.J. Geise reads a paper as he treats himself to coffee and a baked good at a Starbucks coffee shop in Seattle on Jan. 25. Associated Press (Associated Press / The Spokesman-Review)

SEATTLE – Starbucks Corp. and AT&T Inc. will start offering a mix of free and paid wireless Internet service in most of the international coffee retailer’s U.S. shops, beginning this spring.

The move announced Monday ends a six-year partnership with T-Mobile, which did not include free Wi-Fi and charged higher fees than AT&T will.

Starbucks said it will give customers who use a Starbucks card two hours of free wireless access per day. More time than that 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.

Nearly all of AT&T’s broadband Internet customers, about 12 million, will automatically have unlimited free Wi-Fi access at Starbucks, the companies said.

The deal boosts the number of AT&T hotspots in the U.S. to 17,000 – the most in the nation.

“We’re very excited about what we’re doing together to align ourselves with what consumers want,” said Rick Welday, a chief marketing officer for AT&T’s consumer business.

Current T-Mobile HotSpot customers, who pay from $6 per hourlong session to $9.99 for a day pass to $39.99 a month for unlimited access, will get Wi-Fi access at no extra charge through an agreement between AT&T and T-Mobile.

Chris Bruzzo, Starbucks’ chief technology officer, would not disclose how many customers use the T-Mobile service in Starbucks stores, but said he expects many more will use the new service. Starbucks will begin rolling it out this spring and aims to have it available in its more than 7,000 company-operated domestic stores by the end of the year.

Robert Toomey, an analyst with E.K. Riley Investments, called the move “a good first step” for a company that has seen its traffic into U.S. stores decline for two consecutive quarters.

It’s smart for Starbucks to link the new Wi-Fi service to its purchase card, which tens of millions of people use to buy their mochas and lattes, he said.

“I think it’s a double positive for both product sales and traffic,” Toomey said.