Akamai to provide content delivery for Stabucks iTunes store
- — 22 October, 2007 10:48
Akamai is now helping Starbucks customers get some music to go with their double lattes.
Akamai, a Cambridge-based content-delivery network service provider, announced that it will provide hundreds of Starbucks stores with content-delivery servers to help speed up their Wi-Fi iTunes Music Stores. Because Akamai servers will be installed within all participating Starbucks stores, the company says, last-mile connectivity will be reduced to mere feet.
"The iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store and the exclusive 'Now Playing' service in Starbucks locations are a powerful new way for our customers to discover and acquire great new music when and where they are inspired by it," says Ken Lombard, president of Starbucks Entertainment. "With Akamai-enabled servers in our stores, we are able to ensure the highest-quality music downloads while providing a very personalized music experience for our customers.
Last month, Apple and Starbucks announced that they were collaborating by making Apple's iTunes store a fixture on Starbucks' Wi-Fi Internet service. Apple's iTunes store for Starbucks allows anyone connected to a Starbucks Wi-Fi connection to browse, preview and purchase music from iTunes, whether they use a PC, an iPhone or an iPod touch. Around 600 Starbucks locations began offering the iTunes service earlier this month, and more rollouts are expected by the end of the year.
A Starbucks spokesperson said this promotion is currently exclusive to US stores, and there are no immediate plans to expand the service to international markets, including Australia.
