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Actually, my impression is that you get to connect free as WiFi and listen to the currently playing selection. I believe it's an open network. You're not connecting through ATT. Keep some money in your iTunes account and you can buy tunes on the spot using WiFi, not ATT.

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If you're lucky enough to attach to a strong FREE WiFi router then you can use iTunes to listen to 30 second clips all you want and then you can download songs for a price that you pay through iTunes. What they should do is tack on a "quarter" to let you use T-Mobile to download a song.


-Starbucks only has T-Mobile WiFi and it's NOT free to use T-Mobile's WiFi in Starbucks.

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Are we supposed to
sign up for T-mobile AND AT&T just to use iTunes while in Starbucks?

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I didn't mean to give the impression that the wi-fi was open for anything but iTunes. I apologize for any misunderstanding about that.

I was reading about it since it is an outstanding business tactic.

Actually, I probably shouldn't have even answered. I drink my coffee at Waffle House. Music is provided by Mildred the Singing Waitress whose voice is like a well tuned diesel. Farmers like that kind of thing. Don't laugh though, tips make her considerably more than the share of 99 cents she could earn for a tune with Apple.

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...who's really going to use this?...

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I'm looking at this like a business deal. There are a lot of if's but try some of these out.

The wifi is not/might not be on T-Mobile equipment. If TM's stuff were used, a simple configuration could be propogated across the country in 24 hours.

It's taking months to set up. Possibly, maybe, if again, Apple is/might be supplying the server in Starbucks not running on T-Mobile equipment.

Starbucks does not run franchises. These are trusted company stores with wide controlled market penetration. If each one were running an Apple made server with Apple software to push an Apple product, Apple would become a trusted wireless carrier with wide controlled market penetration.

Possibly, maybe, if some more, Apple is pushing a song a day deal. Some content provider may decide to pay for the honor of being a song for the day just as radio stations were paid to play a title.

The thing is, whatever wifi gizmo being used at Starbucks, the default wifi choice (home/school/work) is being overridden by wifi at Starbucks. It pops on automatically.

Let's say two years down the road, this deal is running smoothly. Apple has a VP of Hot Spots. T-Mobile is displaced. Apple picks up the revenue stream for fee based wifi. Apple/Starbucks gift cards could be used with wide market penetration by students in Flagstaff, Arizona, businessmen in airports, and iPhone/iTouch wielding shoppers at the mall.

The new face of Apple could be, maybe, if's galore, a hardware provider, a wifi services provider, a content/culture of the day provider. Just give Apple your credit card details.

With wide market penetration, Apple's VP of Hot Spots could fill in the gaps between Starbucks locations. That's why I think the Starbucks link is a bigger story than the iPhone hack. It's a deal made in heaven instead of a deal made with the devil.

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Most likely they're just using the Starbucks moniker to entice people to Wake Up and smell the coffee (excuse the pun) and start to listen to iTunes and buy more music - it is a pretty big business isn't it?

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I myself don't download that much music but I like that you don't have to buy the whole album to get that one song that you can't do without.

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I have seen people in Starbucks that I'm guessing are using T-Mobile to get to the intranet or is it internet?

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