TORONTO — Starbucks Canada has launched its mobile payment iPhone app.

The app was created to provide faster and more convenient way to shop for coffee and allows customers to pay for coffee purchases from their iPhone, check their Starbucks card balance, reload their Starbucks Card account with any major credit card, find nearby Starbucks stores, access food and beverage nutrition information and search for a job at the company.

TORONTO — Smartphone-wielding university students will be the first to experience Push a Deal, the new mobile service that alerts users to a deal when they are within the participating business’ vicinity.

In a partnership between contract caterers Aramark Canada and the University of Toronto, students at the St. George campus will be the first to receive deals on their smartphones for foodservice locations in their area.

TORONTO — Two all-beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese and now a clever nutrition calculator for the Apple iPhone. McDonald's Canada has developed a one-of-a-kind nutrition calculating application available free from iTunes.

“We're thrilled to expand the accessibility of nutrition information to a new platform, one that makes it easier than ever for people to check nutrient values and customize their order before they make a purchase” said Richard Ellis, senior vice-president, Communications and Public Affairs, McDonald's Restaurants of Canada Limited.

TORONTO — Pizza Pizza recently received a Webby Award for its iPhone ordering app.

The Webby’s — international awards that honour cyber-based tools — recognized the Canadian brand’s app, developed by Plastic Mobile, for being the best shopping tool for a handheld device. The chain beat out major U.S. retail giants such as Walgreens and Target.

“We’ve really made a push to enter the online world through our web-ordering system and now our mobile app,” said Pat Finelli, chief marketing officer for Pizza Pizza. “This is a big win for us. It proves we’ve delivered when it comes to reliability and convenience, which are characteristics of ours that customers have really come to expect and value.”