March 22, 2004
Koreans turn into walking jukeboxes
This third chapter of an eight-part series on Internet culture in Korea featured in The Korea Herald, describes how as wireless handsets become every Korean's indispensable accessory, telecom companies are scrambling to tailor them to individual needs and tastes. The most common and audible way being through music.
"Users can access ring tones, color-rings, and other downloadable sound recordings through close to 100 Web sites on the Internet. Nate, an SK Telecom Web site, boasts a selection of over 500,000 songs, which grows daily.
Since the material now available accommodates a wide range of tastes and styles, many regard the ring tone or color-ring (ring back tone) as a telling marker of personality.
"It really shows what kind of person you are," said Kim So-young, a 24-year-old management consultant. "People use music on their handsets to express themselves. Even if you don't know the person at all, you can catch a glimpse of what they are like, their characteristics and their preferences."
Some said color-rings could play a role when arranging "sogae-ting," or blind dates. "They do not make or break first impressions, but they can certainly set the mood," said Kim.
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