Starbucks teases new mobile commerce options

Starbucks said it will increase its menu of mobile commerce services in 2013, with mobile tipping as well as new ordering and personalization tools slated to launch in the months ahead. Speaking with analysts last week after the coffeehouse giant announced its fiscal first quarter financial results, Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz said the company also plans to leverage its mobile and social media efforts to drive consumers to its Teavana stores, which Starbucks acquired last year.

According to Schultz, more than 7 million customers use the Starbucks Card Mobile App, which connects iPhone, Android and BlackBerry devices to prepaid Starbucks Card accounts to enable barcode-based transactions. The app now accounts for 2.1 million mobile purchases each week, he added. Starbucks is also exploring new opportunities to exploit partner Square's mobile payment technologies, which rolled out across 7,000 U.S. stores late last year. "We are in the nascent stage of being able to leverage and integrate social, digital, mobile, our investment with Square and the loyalty program into a very significant and robust opportunity going forward," Schultz said. Article