Starbucks, iTunes Team Up for Free Songs, WiFi

The most "hip and trendy" music download site is combining with the one retail environment that may just as well define "hip and trendy". Yeah, that's right, Apple's megapopular iTunes music service has teamed up with overpriced java distributor Starbucks, promising free songs to customers waiting for a caffeine fix.

According to reports, Starbucks intends to dole out some 50 million free tunes in its domestic coffee shops to promote iTunes' upgrade to wireless service, set to debut in select markets soon.

What's the deal?

For the month between October 2 and November 7, Starbucks will distribute one and a half million "Song of the Day" cards throughout its 10,000 American shops. In order for customers to get their free stuff, they'll have to take the card online and redeem it via the iTunes store.

The featured playlist boasts some big names, each covering somebody's generation of music. Apple and Starbucks are pushing Paul McCartney, Joni Mitchell, Joss Stone, Dave Matthews, and even John Mayer on the public. The first "Song of the Day" will be Bob Dylan's "Joker Man." (Source: dailytech.com)

For those customers won over by the ploy, Starbucks is ready and willing to sell entire albums, along with bonus material. Featured most prominently in all this is a soundtrack for the movie "Into the Wild," featuring brand new music from Pearl Jam lead singer Eddie Vedder. It'll cost you $11.99, but prices on other albums vary. (Source: ap.google.com)

Perhaps the dandiest features of the whole tag-team effort is the chain's free WiFi. Soon, an iPhone or iPod Touch will literally light up when within range of Starbucks' wireless signal. Customers can then peruse the iTunes store at no charge.

Starbucks is hardly new to music. It has been selling compact discs in stores for some time, and teamed with iTunes in late 2006. The plan for the WiFi service is to test the waters across 600 stores in Seattle and New York before expanding to San Francisco by this time in November.

Sounds great and all...but why don't they just can the music shenanigans and concentrate on making their coffee cheaper?