It is only live in the Bay Area and Seattle for now, but I can see this taking off as users flock [...]]]> In a move taking us one step closer to Japan, Starbucks’ new iPhone app lets you pay for your purchase at the register by displaying a scannable barcode linked to your account:

It is only live in the Bay Area and Seattle for now, but I can see this taking off as users flock to the idea of having an all-in-one payment device.

Starbucks App Uses Your iPhone to Pay for Lattes – starbucks iphone app – Gizmodo.

In an astounding announcement, Facebook reveals that 65 million users now interact with the site through mobile applications:

Facebook Mobile first started as a simple mobile site in English with a few of the core site features built in, such as status updates and photo uploads. Since then, we’ve grown far beyond what was [...]]]>

In an astounding announcement, Facebook reveals that 65 million users now interact with the site through mobile applications:

Facebook Mobile first started as a simple mobile site in English with a few of the core site features built in, such as status updates and photo uploads. Since then, we’ve grown far beyond what was then a fairly basic mobile site. We have translated the mobile site into other languages, launched Facebook SMS and deployed a wide range of applications for hundreds of mobile handsets, including Facebook for Blackberry, Facebook for iPhone and Facebook for Nokia.

Those who use Facebook mobile apps remember the bare-bones features initially offered through the service (basically, you were allowed to update your status.). With the latest iPhone app, you can now access nearly every feature of the regular site through your phone. This stands in stark contrast to MySpace, whose mobile app suffers from an excess number of ads, and whose much-celebrated deal with Helio has disappointed since inception.

via Facebook | Facebook Mobile: Now Connecting 65 Million People.

The surprising nugget was that a full 20% of respondents claimed they discovered apps through ads in other apps. If true, this could [...]]]> According to AdMob, iPhone and iPod Touch users discovered the 1.5 billion apps they’ve downloaded through search and browsing, which is hardly surprising. (What else could it be? Recommendation engine? Social recs?)

The surprising nugget was that a full 20% of respondents claimed they discovered apps through ads in other apps. If true, this could point the way for companies hungry to promote their brands through iPhone apps. Instead of relying upon the Field of Dreams school of product promotion (“If you build it, they will come”), they could promote their apps through targeted advertisements in current popular apps which offer the best spillover effects. (Of course, determining spillover potential is an art unto itself.)

Now, a couple of caveats:

• This was a small survey (n=190).
• AdMob has a vested interest in driving cross-app advertising sales.

So take these results with just a little grain of salt.

via CHART OF THE DAY: How Do iPhone Users Discover Apps? (AAPL).