starbucks

Starbucks mobilizes Pick of the Week, gives away Angry Birds Star Wars

Starbucks has worked with Apple to expand its Pick of the Week program and finally allow for application and book downloads through its iOS application and in-store Wi-Fi network, the coffee company shared exclusively with CNET.

The announcement makes the retailer's Pick of the Week program, initially launched in 2008 to provide customers with digital content freebies, more accessible to people on mobile devices.

In 2011, Starbucks started offering paid content from Apple's App Store and iBookstore, but only through printed cards with codes for redemption that people had to pick up in stores. In the fall of … Read more

Wireless charging still has strings attached

As obviously useful as wireless charging is, it suffers from a Tower of Babel problem with incompatible standards and competing interests keeping it from truly going mainstream.

But the industry may yet be inching toward some level of sanity. AT&T is seeking from its handset vendors a commitment to one standard of wireless charging, CNET has learned.

The standard, known as PMA, or the Power Matters Alliance, is spearheaded by Powermat Technologies and Procter & Gamble, two unlikely leaders considering their highest-profile products are the bulky iPhone charging covers that only true power-hungry users submit themselves to using. … Read more

Starbucks starts selling Square Readers for $10 in-store

Square has just extended its partnership with Starbucks a bit further.

The companies announced today that Starbucks customers can now buy Square's Mobile Card Readers in-store at 7,000 locations nationwide. Starbucks is selling the Reader for $10 but will give customers back $10 if they're new merchants or individuals who sign up for Square's service.

Starbucks is a major investor in Square, dropping $25 million into the mobile-payment startup last year. Since then, the companies have been working closely to expand Square's footprint across the U.S. In November, in fact, Starbucks announced that it … Read more

Square COO predicts monster 2013, says Starbucks is just the beginning

After a monster 2012 in which Square, a leader in the mobile payments space, tripled its user base, added Starbucks as a major partner, and hit more than $10 billion in annualized transactions, its COO is predicting that 2013 looks even better.

A year ago, the San Francisco-based startup, which was founded by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey, announced that it had reached a million users and that 75,000 merchants were accepting payments through Square. Now, COO Keith Rabois told CNET in an interview, the company has passed 3 million users and 250,000 merchants taking Square Wallet.

Without question, … Read more

iTunes 11 surprise: Apple sneaks in a gift card scanner

One unadvertised feature in Apple's just-released iTunes 11 lets users tap into their built-in video camera to redeem gift cards and other promotional codes.

The feature, which Apple did not demonstrate at the software's unveiling in September or in subsequent marketing materials, can pull out the alphanumeric codes and submit them. This means you can redeem a code without having to type it in, though that option remains if the software is unable to pick it up.

In order to use the feature, the promotional code must be from gift cards that place the code within a square … Read more

Prowling the streets of San Francisco with Square Wallet

SAN FRANCISCO -- There's so many choices. Cupcakes. Pizza. Sandwiches. Artisanal beverages. A chiropractor. Even a world-class speaker series. And that's all just within a few blocks.

My iPhone is in my hand, and I'm about to head out on a spending spree. No cash or credit cards will see the light of day, but I won't be having any uncomfortable conversations with security guards either. Welcome to my Square Wallet walking tour.

For the uninitiated who think of Square and visualize someone in a food truck ringing up a burrito by swiping a credit card … Read more

Square hits $10 billion in annual payments processed

Mobile-payments startup Square said today that it is now processing $10 billion in transactions a year.

That's a major milestone for a company that announced just seven months ago that it had hit $5 billion in annualized transactions, and two months ago that it had passed the $8 billion mark. In October, 2011, the number was $2 billion.

Founded by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey, San Francisco-based Square has become a leader in the mobile-payments space, growing to the point that last week, Starbucks integrated its service into the coffee giant's 7,000 U.S. stores.

In a tweet … Read more

Google, Amazon, Starbucks face tax scrutiny in U.K.

If a firm can generate billions of dollars in sales and only pay minimal tax rates, is it fair?

Reuters reports that executives from Google, Amazon, and Starbucks will be queried today by the U.K.'s Public Accounts Committee.

The questions that will arise are whether these firms are conducting themselves fairly in light of the current economic climate, and whether the amount of tax paid in the U.K. by each company is acceptable when they make millions abroad -- or use legal maneuvering to pay as little as possible when the taxman comes knocking.

The Public Accounts … Read more

Limits of using Square at Starbucks

Thursday's CNET Update has a tall order:

Today's tech news roundup explains how to pay with Square Wallet at Starbucks and how it's different from the Starbucks app. Small businesses have been taking hands-free payments with Square Wallet for several months. But Starbucks, which recently invested in Square, is still requiring you to scan your phone screen at checkout. Also in today's show:

- Pinterest users can finally pin in private. Users can create three "Secret Boards" for personal use, or to share with select users.

- Amazon uncorked its wine store, delivering to … Read more