Sucessful ringtone contest on a Bollywood flick

Downloading Hindi-film-songs-based ringtones is another popular trend among cell users and a profitable revenue model for many dotcoms, according to Agency Faqs!.

Following the trend, "Main Prem Ki Diwani Hoon", a much talked-about Bollywood flick has an online ringtones contest on Yahoo! India. where the winners will be able to meet the stars of the movie. Launched June 10, the contest has been so successful, that Yahoo! India is extending the last date of the contest to July 10.

Interesting: "This is a first-of-its kind deal between a web portal and a movie where the portal is prominently featured as a part of the story. The stars in the film use Yahoo! Mail to communicate in the movie, with the high point being one of the climax scenes in the movie".

Sony Music and Warner Music license ringtones to Sprint PCS

Two of the world's largest record labels, Sony Music and Warner Music, plan to license their music to Sprint PCS in an effort to mine new markets to offset a slump in music sales.

Sprint PCS plans to offer song snippets from Sony Music as ringtones, rather than the conventional computerized warbles and tweets, according to Moco News.

"While computerized ring tones based on popular songs have been available for some time, Sprint PCS is the first U.S. company to use actual snippets of songs to be sold as ring tones. Many phones in Europe and Asia already offer actual song snippets as ring tones", reports News.com.

"Sprint PCS also plans to expand a music subscription service that allows customers to use a wireless Internet connection to listen to, or "stream," complete songs from Warner Music.

Warner Music estimates that the ringtone business exceeds $2 billion worldwide, the bulk of which outside the United States. The company expects ringtone sales to exceed $50 million in the US", according to News.com.

Rap's biggest star is now appearing on cell phones near you

From Gidzmodo: "Slate tackles why 50 Cent, besides topping the Billboard charts, also happens to be the most downloaded artist when it comes to cellphone ringtones. Looking beyond the most obvious cause for this - that white suburban kids think it's street to have "In Da Club" as their ringtone - Rob Walker identifies another reason: that hip hop tracks translate into ringtones better than other music". Check it out on Zingy.com.

"God Save the Queen" ringtones

Patriotic Brits can download "God Save the Queen" ringtones interpreted in several ways, on Ringtones Direct.

Free ringtones as part of Marketing mix in MTV campaign

MTV's Motomash programmes, sponsored by Motorola, to be broadcast in the UK as of July 14, will be promoted by mobile marketing genius Flytxt.

"Fly-posters will advertise the promotion in major cities around the UK, with a number printed to invite consumers to text in for more information. Flytxt will then deliver relevant details of local Motomash events by SMS, as well as offering consumers the chance to download ringtones for free", according to Netimperative.

Streaming music to cell phones

"Boston Webcaster RadioStorm has begun streaming its music to mobile phone users. The Radio and Internet Newsletter reports that 20,000 to 30,000 mobile phone users are "dialing in" each month", according to a post in E-Media Tidbits. "What this appears to be, more than the real "evolution" of Internet radio to wireless -- is a nice first step", reports Paul Maloney for RAIN.

Is downloading ringtones legal?

In India, many portals and cellular operators are are operating "illegally" by offering ringtones for download without paying copyright fees, according to industry sources and reported in Mid Day.

Depending on whether it's a sound recording of an original track, or the tone is re-recorded and is not an exact extract of the original sound track, providers should ask for a licence from the Indian Music Industry (a consortium of over 50 music companies representing over 75 per cent of the industry) or take a licence from the Indian Performance Right Society.

"While there is no estimate of the turnover of the ringtone sector in the country as yet, a survey by a UK-based Internet Monitoring company says that the "massive intellectual property abuse has the potential of costing the world music industry as much as USD one million dollar per day", according to Mid Day.

Java plays a part in ringtone purchases

In an article published by David Kirkpatrick in Fortune on Java, a programming language and operating environment for software designed to run on any kind of computer or cell phone, Jonathan Schwartz, Sun's current software boss, claimed that "the number of Java-equipped cellphones sold this year will exceed the world's total sales of PCs. And Java is poised to solve the problem of delivering digital content securely.

The market for selling cellphone ringtones in Europe is now $1.6 billion annually, with the average ringtone selling for about $2.50, with some going for as much as $5. Many of these are excerpts of popular songs. In some countries the ringtone industry has become as large as the record industry. Put that in the pipe of the next person who says we're not in a new economy".

Music companies are happy to see their songs distributed as ringtones in part because the digital information is only playable by the purchaser. What ensures that is the "SIM" or subscriber identification module in each phone, which typically uses Java. The Java simcard identifies the user as authorized to use the content".

Ricky Martin's Album Debuted on Cellphones in S Korea

From blog-wiz Rafat Ali on Moco.News: "The new Ricky Martin album, released on Sony Music, was debuted not in US or Puerto Rico, but in South Korea, on cellphones. On May 13, six days before the release worldwide, South Koreans downloaded cuts from the CD to their mobile phones. So far, a total of 100,000 downloads of Ricky Martin's music, videos and photos have been made in Korea, according to Sony Music".

In an article entitled A new role for phones as promoter of pop music published in the Joogang Daily, the Ricky Martin downloads were touted as "heralding a new age in entertainment promotion" but just as a reminder, Nylon Beat, a top Finnish girl band, was the first group in May of 2000 to release their new title, "Not Guilty", as a ringtone before the CD was available on the market. The teaser played over the radio proved so effective that it became No. 1 the first day it hit the stores. cf Nylon Beat, releases first ringtone teaser.

An Incredible Mobile Media Campaign for the Hulk

Friday is the release date for "The Hulk," but the big green guy won't limit himself to movie theaters and merchandising. Moviso will be helping him take over the wireless world with featured games, graphics, contests and along with polyphonic and monophonic ring tones from the movie score and soundtrack, Moviso is offering its own TruTones product, which replaces the ring tone with actual recordings of sound effects from the film. Per an article in Reuters via Moco.News.

Classical Tones

Tired of hearing Eminem on your cell phone? UK ringtones' service specializes in classical music. The Web Editors are ardent classical music fans themselves and they plan on building the largest collection of classical music ringtones available anywhere for any phone. And they are on to a good start. Available in the UK. Other nationals and US users should click here.

Nokia And Sony Ericsson License mp3 Technology for Cell Phone Music Playback

Thomson Multimedia, the exclusive licensing representative of MP3 patents, has licensed its MP3 music technology to both Nokia and SonyEricsson on Wednesday afternoon, setting the stage for MP3-enabled cell phones, per an article in Extreme Tech.

Ringback tones

Ringback tones are a fairly new and extremely popular service available to South Koreans for about $ 1.50 a month, allowing subscribers to select a limited number of sound clips or sound effects to replace the traditional ringing, according to Christine Nuzumto in a very interesting and thorough article for the WSJ. Let's say your friend calls you with his cell phone, instead of hearing the familiar ringing sound until you answer, he will hear Madonna's "American Life" instead, or a pre-recorded message such as Happy Birthday, or I love you. You can chose a specific ringback tone for a specific contact in your phone book or for different times of the day. (cf Color Rings Enables Further Wireless Personalization.

Ringback tones, called Color Ring, "were pioneered by SK Telecom, the largest mobile service operator in Korea and launched in April 2002 and quickly became so popular that SK Telecom had to scramble to keep up with demand", according to Brough Turner, Senior Vice President and CTO in an article entitled Changing the Sound of Telephony published in NMS Communications last Spring. NMS sells the technology for ringback service to SK Telecom.

Unlike ringtones which are downloaded and stored in a cell phone, ringback tones are stored in a server at a central telecom switch, so it works with any handset, reports Christine Nuzumto.

According to a Yankee Group study, South Korean wireless carriers collected a total of $91.4 million in ringback revenue last year. The Ringback tone service should be launched soon in China or Malaysia and in the U.S. and Europe by early 2004, per the WSJ.

Ringtone Revenue, more than a song

Ring tones — a service that didn't exist five years ago — now account for $50 million in annual revenue, according to the Yankee Group, a Boston-based market researcher, according to SiliconValley.com via moco.news

Harry Potter Theme ringtone

With the latest Harry Potter book to be realased on June 21st, Harry Potter is in the air and on the air too for that matter. If you own a Nokia handset, and are a wizard fan, you can potterize your cell or mobile phone with the theme from the Harry Potter movies on mugglenet.

More on Harry Potter mania and cell phones in textually.

Ringing once: squillo or pranking

This is a favorite story, posted by Howard Rheingold in Smart Mobs last year, reporting on an article published in The Age, about Italian students who have developed an entire communications system based on not answering their cell phone when it rings. "They have called their development "the squillo". A squillo is a one-ring mobile phone call - squillare means "to ring" in Italian. The receiving phone buzzes for one to two seconds and then stops. It notes who the call is from, that is all. A squillo is not meant to be answered; it is meant to be noticed".

In the ON/OFF documentary on the social aspects of the use of communication technologies in a variety of cultural settings, the single ring practice came up in one of the English families filmed by the crew in London, but with a very different meaning. Unlike the Italians who ring once to flirt or convey the message "I'm thinking about you." UK Teenagers ring once to save money. In what they call "pranking", they dial a number and hang up after the first ring, so their number appears on the cell screen of the recipient, who then calls them back at his expense.

Selling Ringtones Through Radio Stations

RadioVoodoo, a technology outsourcing company for radio networks in U.S., has launched a new VoodooTones service, which will allow radio stations to sell ringtones, according to Moco.News.

"Ringtones" in top ten search terms on AOL

Verbatim: "AOL said 'ringtones' consistently appear in the top ten search terms on AOL Search". UK Netimperative.

What Your Ringtone Says About You

No earth shaking news around the web on ringtones today (well, so far) so here is one of my favorite stories/studies from last year.

"Psychologist Graham Wilson believes that your choice of ringtones can reveal more about yourself that you might think. For example, young people choose popular music to show they fit in. An aggresive young professional may choose an action movie or tv show theme because they have no real action or drama in their lives. And people who don't choose ringtones at all view their phones a purely functional items and are too busy to download or choose a custom ringtones. This very scientific research is just another reason should set their phone to vibrate most of the time". The Herald via Techdirt Wireless.

Favorite Ringtones are cultural in Japan

Xeni Jardin reports in a post on boingboing on the changing business of cell phone ringtones in Japan, where roughly 80 percent of the ringtones are Japanese songs with Japanese pop music ruling the ringtone charts. "Song clips, called chaku-uta, are hayatteru ("totally trendy") with the under-30 crowd. And chaku-goe, ("voice,") is "another popular type of ringtone".

Napster-Like services popping up for the downloading of cell phone content

An article in the WSJ questions whether cellphone entertainment, which is just starting to pick up in the US, will be plagued with the same problems as the recording industry online, too many freebies.

Already, several Napster-like file sharing sites have popped up allowing for the downloading of mobile content, such as MyPhoneFiles.com or Xingtone.com, where "users can create their own cellphone content from their personal music collections".

Phonic Surround-Sound Ring Tone Service for Mobile Phones

Dwango Japan, developer of wireless applications and technology for users of next-generation mobile devices, "will be launching a ring tone delivery service for mobile phones on June 11, offering melody and voice ring tones in 3D-phonic sound", according to an article in NE Asia Online via moco.news

"Targeted at mobile phones equipped with two speakers, the ring tone service promises a virtual surround-sound effect in music and voice, just like having 5.1-channel speakers. The surround-sound effect is designed for maximum impact when the user holds the mobile phone, with arm outstretched, up to the face".

Charlie's Angels' ringtones

US mobile operator Cingular Wireless has opened a specific web site for Charlies' Angels's fans, offering "Full Throttle" ringtones from the movie soundtrack. 'Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle, opening across country June 27 is expected to be a summer blockbuster.

Research: SMS in Europe

As much as 10% of Europe's SMS traffic now comes from value-added services and content such as ringtones, quizzes and mobile chat, says international wireless messaging operator Netsize in it's recently published Guide "All about the European SMS market", presented at last week's SMS 2003 conference, according to Wireless Developer Network.

Great partnerships for Musiwaves

I'm passing on two press releases received this morning from a leading European provider of mobile music and entertainment services Musiwave. The company has made some important deals with major records labels for the distribution of original recordings of songs, instead of ringtones.

1) Sony Music Europe has just announced an agreement with to distribute Musitones™ -- a patented technology, enabling users to play an extract of an original music as a ringtone. --. This agreement will enable mobile users to download music from over one hundred Sony Music artists extracted from the original recordings of songs.

2) Musiwave has signed three separate licenses with three key independent record labels, German based Edel music AG, Sanctuary Group, a leading developer of music, audio-visual and entertainment intellectual property rights with offices in the UK, US and Germany and Pschent.com a French label which produces compilations for bands.

Anyone needing further information on the above, can contact Samira Fertas in France. Tel + 33 (0)6 20 51 36 13 - + 33 (0)1 43 38 06 75. Mail: samira@musiwave.com

Karaoke Ringtones

Irish technology company Alatto has developed a new java application called air.karaoke, that will let users download songs and lyrics, to create mobile karaoke machines.

Elsewhere: Another karaoke application is offered by Japanese ringtone providers, allowing subscribers to 'practice' songs. This service has been widened to include images, and users can send up to four photos which can be 'watched' while the audio clip is playing. (cf The ringtone market remains a surprise to many)

"Terminator 3" sound bytes on your cell phone

Termintator 3: Rise of the Machines ("T3") wallpaper and ringtones will be available to most domestic wireless carriers upon the movie's release July 2nd, featuring songs and sound bytes from the movie with Arnold Schwarzenegger in his signature role, per dBusiness News.

The Mobile Content Vending Machine

A new vending machine selling ringtones, graphics, games and applications is being launched in the US in a test market by seven retailers who own approximately 12,000 retail locations nationally.

"Through the Mobile Content Vending Machine, customers browse a comprehensive selection of mobile content products, preview what the product sounds or looks like, then purchase the product by entering cash directly into the machine. Once the customer has completed the purchase, the product is sent instantly, over-the-air to their mobile phone", according to mobilemag via Gizmodo.

Elsewhere: Last April, Eotoday.com announced a partnership with Sony Thai for the operation of a music downloading service called Music 4U, available through ringtone kiosks to be installed in 16 Sony shops in Bangkok. (cf Downloading ringtones from a Sony kiosks in Bangkok) [Picture from Mobilemag]

IDC Sees Carriers Dancing in the Streets Over Ringtone Revenue Opportunity

Although the U.S. ringtone market is small in 2003, a combination of several key trends will drive the revenue opportunity for this market to more than $1 billion by 2007, according to a new study by IDC.

The U.S. market for ringtones is still in a formative stage. IDC believes momentum in this market will be driven by the increased availability of polyphonic-capable devices and polyphonic ringtone content during the next 12 to 18 months.

By late 2004 and early 2005, the U.S. market will be headed toward higher-quality music content delivered through premium wireless audio services to niche markets, phasing out standard monophonic ringtones.

IDC's recently released report, Ringing in the Revenue: U.S. Wireless Ringtone Forecast, 2002-2007 (IDC #29438), examines U.S. wireless ringtone subscribers and revenue associated with those subscribers, ringtone users by age and gender, U.S. monophonic versus polyphonic ringtone purchasers, and U.S. monophonic versus polyphonic ringtone revenue share. In addition, this study describes the current ringtone offerings of the major U.S. wireless carriers and service providers.

To purchase this document, call IDC's sales hotline at 508-988-7988 or email sales@idc.com.

Under water music ringtone

My son received a Panasonic camera phone (GD87) for his birthday and one of the integrated polyphonic ringtones (#13), is music played under water. A first for me.