Become a Starbucks Barista with FourSquare

The inevitable has happened: Starbucks has teamed up with FourSquare to provide a Barista badge to those customers who check-in to 5 or more Starbucks. At the moment, this doesn't actually get you anything - but Starbucks are saying that they are deciding what to give back to FourSquare Baristas.
FourSquare will also be providing businesses with stats about their customers soon.

Read more:
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/03/11/starbucks-fans-can-become-a-barista-on-foursquare/

Disney launch iPhone app

Disney are launching an iPhone app, allowing Disneyphiles to access content wherever they are. It also features the Click2Life feature, whereby exclusive content can be accessed by taking pictures on the phone of images on posters and on the website.

http://www.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUSTRE59R0HX20091028

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2009/10/28/business/AP-US-Disney-iPhone.html

Will people pay for content?

Paid content seems to be getting a lot of coverage at the moment (not just on this blog!). E-consultancy have put together a nice list of the Five Biggest Paid Content Myths:

• Nobody pays for content
• Content just wants to be free
• We need micropayments
• Content is a commodity
• 
Paid content is a solution to the print media's woes

It's an interesting read. One of the comments makes the very good point, that we'll always have the issue of the BBC and their (IMHO) excellent online content in the UK.

I've also attached an article about the success of the Financial Times, which has been charging since 2002.

Read more:
http://econsultancy.com/blog/4389-the-five-biggest-paid-content-myths

Financial Times doesn't want to be free:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/17/business/media/17ft.html