[Patrick_Devine]

It's not quite like having a coupon or carrying a credit card, but more like insurance. You're insuring that the maximum you'll pay for coffee every month is $45. If you think of it that way, it's a pretty good deal, and doesn't come with a ton of friction (you're more than likely already carrying a smart phone). Now you certainly could pay less than $45/month on coffee with coupons, but this takes away the hassle from both the consumer and from the coffee shop.

I'm curious if the discount being offered to individual coffee shops is negotiated or if it's a flat rate. I would imagine that each shop charges different amounts for a cup of coffee, although maybe it falls around some uniform distribution. Certain locations probably skew one way or the other though; does a cup of coffee cost more or less in midtown or the financial district than SoHo?

[nitid_name]

Doesn't every coffee place in NYC use the same blue coffee cups?

I haven't been in awhile, but I remember the slice of pizza being pretty consistent from shop to shop and something about it being related to the cost of the subway. I could imagine coffee having a similar pricing scheme throughout the city.

[Patrick_Devine]

I'd forgotten about the NYC blue coffee cups, but yes, I think that was the case in the past, or at least, it is according to wikipedia. Here's a link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthora

I'm assuming these guys are targeting the more shi-shi fru-fru latte scene and not your blue collar cuppa cha which I associate with the anthora cups.