The Corporate Beast

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Well, so much for my new office. I just found out that the Starbucks company, including the one that just opened up down the street from our house, is apparently more of a corporate money mongering beast than I realized. Did you know that Starbucks stores are NOT free wi-fi hot spots?!?! Yeah, you have to pay to get a T-Mobile Hotspot Account! At $9.99/day or $29.99-$39.99/month I think I'll pass--I mean crap, I'm already paying 4.50 for a cup of coffee! What's going on here? How, and more importantly why, would ANY coffee joint not have free wi-fi to offer to their patrons??? Isn't that just good ole' plain marketing? If I'm a Starbucks sales analyst I'd be thinking, "Hmm, free wi-fi = more patrons + longer visits = increased coffee sales." Hmm, maybe they should hire me! Sorry, ranting over...

I do know that this unfortunate learning experience is enough to make me NOT consider T-mobile as a cell phone provider next year when our Sprint contract runs out (though it's not their fault I guess), and it's borderline enough to make me refrain from throwing a bone (or $$$) at the Starbucks company as well. But alas, I fear that lack of other alternatives to satisfy those late night coffee cravings and conversation venues will drive me yet again to the belly of the beast named Starbucks. Maybe I'll use this as motivation to considerer pursuing my jazz lounge/coffee bar/Laundromat idea. Hey, don't knock it 'til you've heard the whole story...