The much-ballyhooed Starbucks-iTunes WiFi music service launches today, with The New York Times weighing in on its potential impact in Starbucks coffee shops citywide.

Starting today in certain Starbucks locations, "a person with an iPhone or iTunes software loaded onto a laptop can download the songs they hear over the speakers directly onto those devices. The price will be 99 cents a song, a small price, Starbucks says, to satisfy an immediate urge.

"For the customer it's an instant gratification," said Ken Lombard, president of Starbucks Entertainment, in the article. "You'll hear the song, be able to identify what it is and download to the device."

The Times story goes on to give other examples of technology providing instant gratification, all of which raise the original Amazon one-click buying experience to a new--and potentially bank account draining--level on the go.

At Starbucks, Songs of Instant Gratification [NYT]