The free college tuition program that Starbucks announced this week with Arizona State University's online program, he says, "is in no way related" to the price hikes. • No increase: Grande Latte, Tall Brewed Coffee and Frappuccino beverages, in most stores. Root beer, ginger ale, and lemon ale sodas will be available starting this week in the Los Angeles, San Diego, Stockton, and Modesto areas of California, and in Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada, Utah, Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, and Hawaii. They were named the top beverage trend last year in the National Restaurant Association's annual survey of top chefs. Companies 
 
 Starbucks’s (SBUX) test last year of made-to-order Fizzio sodas in Atlanta, Austin, and Japan is being expanded to the southern half of the U.S and Hawaii. "The vast majority of our customers will not be affected" by the price increase, he says. Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/1iyM1h4
– Starting tomorrow, Starbucks across the sunbelt states will offer a new drink that's—get this—carbonated, USA Today reports. Baristas will be making Fizzio Handcrafted Sodas at rather noisy machines (that add ambiance, not annoyance, apparently) in ginger ale, lemon ale, and root beer flavors. They'll be caffeine-free, without additives or preservatives or high-fructose corn syrup, and cost about $2.45 for a "tall." So what's up? "We are changing the game in terms of how to get a carbonated drink," says Fizzio's brand manager. "Like what Starbucks did to coffee 40 years ago, we think we can do in the carbonation space." Starbucks is expecting only so-so growth from Fizzio sales, but hopes to lure health-conscious Millenials and other customers beyond the morning rush into lunchtime, reports BusinessWeek. Why now? Well, homemade softdrinks are popular these days, named the No. 1 beverage trend in a national survey of top chefs last year (although actual carbonated-drink sales have fallen in the US). The move also comes as Starbucks hikes prices on some drinks by up to 20 cents, reports USA Today.