Starbucks to Start Nationwide Rollout of Wireless Device Charging

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The world’s largest coffee chain is teaming up with Duracell Powermat to let customers recharge mobile devices wirelessly, instead of hunting for available wall outlets. Customers can place their compatible devices atop so-called Powermat Spots on counters and tables to recharge them, Seattle-based Starbucks said today in a statement.

While shops in Boston and San Jose, California, already offer the Powermat service, a national rollout begins today in Starbucks’ company-operated stores and Teavana outlets. The company, which has more than 20,500 locations worldwide, plans pilot programs in Europe and Asia within a year.

...In the world of wireless charging, “Starbucks is the biggest deployment, period,” Daniel Schreiber, president of Powermat Technologies, said in an interview. “We are talking about 100,000 Powermat spots being deployed by Starbucks” eventually, with an average of 13 to 14 Powermat charging spots per store, he said.

The company’s endorsement of Powermat should ensure that the technology becomes the industry standard, Stassi Anastassov, president of Duracell, said in the statement.

...“When Starbucks introduced Wi-Fi in their stores in 2001, 95 percent of devices didn’t have Wi-Fi, and multiple standards hampered the industry,” Anastassov said. “Starbucks’ plans to offer Powermat nationally is likely to settle any lingering standards questions.”

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