Time running out on Starbucks laptop loungers?

It's turned into a favorite American pastime. Pay for a latte - tall, grande or venti - and you're entitled to settle down at Starbucks with your laptop and surf the Internet to your heart's content. But has the coffee chain decided that too much of a good thing (for laptop loungers) isn't such a good thing, either for its stores or for other customers?

Our sister site CNET notes that some New York Starbucks outlets have covered their AC outlets, forcing customers to use their laptop batteries, rather than the company's power supply. The idea, presumably, is to hint that you should drink up your coffee, eat your pastry and move on.

A tipster to Jim Romenesko's Starbucks Gossip site was first with the report.

A spokesman for Starbucks was not immediately available for comment, but we'll update this post if that changes.