Ring back tones take off in Angola

The market-leading Angolan operator has seen a swift adoption of its new ring back tone service, with a service penetration rate of 8%. Unitel S.A. had been offering the service, provided by OnMobile, to its subscribers for just 90 days.

[via Developing Telecoms]

Why did ringbacks fail to catch on in the U.S.?

FierceMobileContent in a feature piece offers an explanation on why ringback tones fail to catch on in the U.S - when they are top sellers in Asia and in certain parts of Africa.

Veronica Maggio releases new single exclusively as ringbacktone - on one phone number only

Comviq, the biggest Swedish pre-paid mobile provider partnered with Universal Music and singer Veronica Maggio to release her new single, "Lördagen den femtonde mars", exclusively as ringbacktone on one phone number only. Adverblog reports.

For two weeks, the only way to hear her new single was to call +46739 52 50 06, a number belonging to an 18 years old student and great fan of Veronica.

According to Adland:

Firat Delen's phone was ringing off the hook, he had his 15 minutes of fame on facebook, radio talkshows and everywhere else, all the while his phone kept ringing. Radio stations called him just to listen to it, and the single went "gold" before it was even released.

Amazingly 56% of the callers signed up immediately for the ringback tone service, which Comviq's competitor 3 has been offering for years already. Well played.

Singapore Networks Agree on Single Brand for Ringback Tones

Singapore's three mobile networks have agreed to collaborate on the branding of ringback tones - and have collectively announced the adoption of a common brand called 'Connecting Tones'. Cellular News reports.

Previously known by other names such as Bye-Bye-Ring-Ring, Call Tones, Colour-Me-Tones, and ringback tones, the new Connecting Tones will now be a consistent brand identity for this mobile value-added service which mobile operators and record labels in Singapore can actively promote and market to all mobile users in Singapore.

Read more.

Ringback tone to raise money for Children in Need 2010

Muzicall, Europe’s leading provider of ringback tone (RBT) services has partnered with several UK mobile operators, media companies and mobile advertising networks to produce and promote a special charity ringback tone for BBC Children in Need 2010.

Mobile Users with participating operators will be able to support BBC Children in Need by purchasing the ringback tone which will be sold from £2.50. 100% of the revenue generated (Excluding VAT) will be donated to BBC Children in Need by participating mobile operators.

In their own words:

We’ve produced a special tone from Voiceover Man who your callers will instantly recognise from The X Factor and Britain’s Got Talent. Purchase this special charity Ringtagz and we’ll give 100% of your donation (ex VAT) to BBC Children in Need to make a positive change to the lives of disadvantaged children and young people right here in the UK. By playing this message to your callers, you’ll be showing your support for the charity as well as letting them know how they can donate money.

e-mail press release.

Other fund raising ringtones.

BMI reveals ringback tone decline

BMI claims that the US ringback tone market dropped 7.2% in the year ended 30 June, from $195 million to $181 million, reports music:) alley.

However, it clarifies that usage of RBTs isn’t falling – just the revenues from selling them. “We believe that this is a result of the emerging trend of bundled services, where ringbacks are made available as part of a package,” says SVP of corporate strategy Richard Conlon.

Read full article.

Muzicall and Warner Music Announce Pan-European Ringback Tone Partnership

Muzicall, Europe’s leading provider of ringback tone (RBT) services, has signed a pan-European deal with Warner Music Group to make the record company’s catalogue of music available as ringback tones to millions of mobile phone users.

Muzicall’s deal with Warner Music Group will allow ringback tone customers to play music from Warner Music Group’s impressive roster of global superstars and up and coming talent.

Unlike ringtones, ringback tones are not downloaded by the consumer to their handset. Instead, a customer’s ringback tones reside on the server of his or her mobile phone operator. This ensures that ringback tones cannot be pirated, which makes it an ideal channel for the music industry.

Ringback tones typically consist of music, however, the customer can also choose from movie clips, TV show theme tunes, sound effects and numerous other sounds. Customers can have an unlimited amount of tunes in their collection with the ability to assign a tune t o different callers, creating a rich and personalised experience.

Full press release by e-mail.

Top Ten Facts and Tips about Ring Back Tones (RBTs) …

Ten interesting facts on Ring Back tones by GoMo News.

-- Ring Back Tones are hugely popular outside of Europe, with 55 per cent of subscribers using Ring Back Tones in Korea, 50 per cent in China and just over 25 per cent in India, making Europe a huge potential market for Ring Back Tones.

-- The opportunity of Ring Back Tones for European operators in untapped media inventory will have grown from €40 million in 2007 to €229 million in 2013. (2008 Juniper Research European Mobile Media Forecast).

-- The Ring Back Tone can consist of any type of musical media files which is an opportunity for operators to run advertisement campaigns, adding another revenue channel.

Read more.

Ring back tones represent 30% of VAS revenue for Indian telecoms

Caller Ring back tones (RBT), or caller tunes, have come a long way from being a novelty in the earlier part of the decade to comprising around 30 per cent of Value-Added Service ( revenue for Indian telecom operators today.

[via Telekom Talk]

Muzicall Launches Ringback Tone Centre of Excellence

Mobile Marketing Magazine reports that Muizcall, which offers ringback tone services, is launching a centre of excellence for the marketing of ringback tones to consumers.

Muzicall says it will act as a dedicated resource for its managed service partners to deliver bespoke, innovative, multi-channel marketing campaigns that will increase awareness and discovery of ringback tones, as well as generating sales and enhancing customer retention.

Tata Docomo Launches First Reverse Ring-Back Tone Service in India

Tata DocomoTata Docomo has launched My Song which is the first Reverse Ring-BackRing-Back Tone Service in India. fonearena reports.

This service is the exact opposite of Caller Tunes or Ringback tones which means that you can choose to listen to any song when you call someone instead of the normal boring Tring-Tring sound or the caller tunes set by the other user.

Users can set a maximum of up to three different songs for calling different contacts.

LiveWire Mobile Goes Commercial with Advertising Ringback Tone Service

LiveWire Mobile, Inc is announcing a new premium advertising service providing wireless carriers an innovative way to generate revenue and increase customer loyalty.

Called RingSpot(TM), the fully opt-in service allows mobile operators to offer consumers the newest personalization option for their mobile devices -- replacing the ring that callers hear when calling them -- with short and clever marketing messages delivered by national advertisers, non-profits and local merchants.

The LiveWire Mobile service enables callers to engage with an ad by pressing a button to receive more information after the call via a text message.

Full press release.

Ringtones' requiem

Customized cellphone rings are so 2004. But the music industry has a new source of revenue – it's all about the ringback tone, according to Fortune Brainstorm Tech.

U.S. ringtone revenue this year will reach about $750 million, down from $881 million in 2007 — and the business will be nonexistent in 2016, says IBIS World, a consumer analyst group.

...But the music industry, which reaped great rewards charging $3 for 15 seconds of content, still hopes to milk the mobile market for revenue even as ringtones fade. The ringback tone (a song that plays for inbound callers instead of a ringing signal) has seen tremendous growth. Ringback revenue has more than doubled since 2005, and it brought in almost $200 million for music labels last year, according to analyst group SNL Kagan.

Read full article.

BMI sues T-Mobile USA over ringbacks

Performing rights organization BMI has filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against T-Mobile USA, alleging the operator sold ringback tones without the necessary licensing agreements in place. FierceMobile Content reports.

The BMI suit follows on the heels of a 2009 ruling that ringtones played aloud in public do not constitute a true performance, rejecting copyright violation charges lodged by ASCAP which filed a lawsuit against AT&T in June 2009.

Read full article.

Related:

-- Court Approves Ringtone Lawsuit Settlement

-- Links to ringtones and lawsuits

Communist Ringback Tones

State-controlled mobile service providers in China are offering communist ringback tone music, the tone that you hear while waiting for someone to pick up the line.

According to Trendhunter, the song played instead of the waiting tone is called ‘Guo Jia,’ which means ‘Country’ in Chinese.

These ringback tones were made to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the founding of the Peoples Republic of China.

Google Developing 'Ringback Advertising' For Google Voice

This article from Information Week is dated July 23, but somehow I missed it then.

Google has updated a patent application filed last year for "ringback advertising," a form of audio advertising that appears to be intended to work with the company's Google Voice service.

Audio ads, the patent application says, may unnecessarily annoy consumers. But providing audio ads during a time otherwise used to play a ringback tone may allow advertising without annoyance "because the consumer would have to otherwise listen to some other form of audio."

Google patents Ringback advertizing

A patent assigned to Google describes how the search giant can monetize its Voice service: play ads while a call is dialing or placed on hold. arstechnica reports.

The patent application, called "Ringback Advertising," is assigned to Google. In general terms, it describes a system for delivering ads to any sort of phone system, including IP, cellular, or landline phones. The idea is to place software somewhere within the flow of telephony data that can identify when a given call is not active, then request audio ads for delivery during that time. Although this obviously pairs nicely with Google's Voice service, there's no reason it couldn't be rolled out to telcos that choose to partner with the search giant.

Read full article.

Room to Grow for Ringbacks

Carriers and others in the wireless ecosystem might be craving killer entertainment content beyond ringtones, but RealNetworks says there’s still plenty of room for growth, especially when it comes to ringbacks. Wireless Week reports.

Awareness remains the No. 1 challenge for ringback tones, says Analisa Roberts, senior director, Global Product Management and Marketing at RealNetworks. Part of the problem is people hear ringback tones when they’re calling someone else, so it’s not as if the whole world can hear it.

In the United States, ringback tone penetration is about 9 percent, so it has a lot of room to grow. Ringtone penetration is harder to gauge than ringbacks because ringbacks reside on the carrier network, which is not the case with ringtones.

Roberts says she can’t reveal specifics, but RealNetworks is working with its carrier partners on some programs to help drive ringback awareness. Most carriers have fairly extensive ringback catalogs.

... According to IDC, ringback tones will overtake ringtones in 2010 and are poised to become the single largest revenue source for mobile entertainment.

Vodafone to launch ring back tones in emerging markets

UK based network services provider Vodafone said it would introduce its “ring back tone” service to customers in emerging markets, a service only available to the company’s customers in India until now.

Ring back tones lets a caller listen to a song or other audio clip chosen by the owner of the mobile device whose number was dialed, instead of letting the caller listen to a traditional dial tone.

Ring back tones are widely used and make up a large proportion of business in the non-downloadable content market.

[via IT News Africa]

Vodafone to Expand Ringback Tone Deal into Emerging Markets

Vodafone has signed a deal with India based OnMobile to offer ringback tones in its emerging markets. ­Currently, millions of Vodafone Essar customers in India use OnMobile's ring back tone service, which will be rolled out across Vodafone’s other emerging markets from the Spring.

[via Cellular News]

Verizon Launches Business Ringback Tones

Verizon has launched a service dubbed Business Ringback Tones, which as you might imagine lets organizations replace the generic ring that people hear when they call them with a customized message. From The Washington Post.

Verizon has some seasoned advertising veterans for scriptwriting and experienced voiceover artists to create the 30-second custom tones, which the company can put on the lines of its employees' and can rotate five active messages so callers hear different ones each time they call. The business can assign different tones to different sets of employees, and let them know of changes to the tone profile via SMS.

KTF Launches Money-Saving Ring-Back Tone Service

A ring-back tone service that helps customers save money, while providing companies with a new advertisement channel is now available. KTF announced the launch of Save Ring service that gives customers discounts if they select advertisements as their mobile ring-back tones.

[via Telecoms Korea]

Apple Investigating Ringback Tones for iPhone?

According to ZDNet's Rumor Mill, Apple is is currently in negotiations with music labels about adding more mobile music options on their iTunes store and is also investigating selling ringback tones which customize the sound your caller hears when the phone is ringing when they call you.

Don't Answer That Phone Call - Just Yet

Turkish operator, Turkcell has launched "TonlaKazan" ("Tone&Win") which offers branded ringback tones to its subscribers. The customers then earn airtime credits by letting callers to their mobile phone listen to the ringback tone - which is basically an advert.

Turkcell customers win airtime or credits depending on the amount of time their callers listen to a branded RingBack Tone selected by the customer.

[via Cellular News]

Growth in ringback tones energizes mobile market

As the cash cow that was the ringtones market slowly heads to pasture, the music industry is turning to a new mobile stud -- ringback tones. Reuters reports.

Ringbacks -- the music you hear when you call someone -- represent the only area of significant growth for mobile music-related applications in the last year. The number of mobile subscribers who reported purchasing a ringback tone increased 69% from February 2007 to February 2008, according to data from M:Metrics.

By comparison, neither ringtones nor wallpaper images could keep pace with the overall market growth, increasing by only 4.3% and 6.2%, respectively, in the same time frame."

"The growth of ringbacks is among the fastest trajectory for growth of any services we're tracking," M:Metrics analyst Mark Donovan says.

Alicia Keys Goes Gold On Ringback Tones

In the US, the RCA Music Group has announced Alicia Keyes hit single "No One" recently became the first ever Gold-selling ringback (the sound you hear when calling someone else) tune.

This means sales of snippets of the song to be used as a ringback have exceeded 500,000 copies or the same number required to achieve Gold status in the album, single and ringtone charts.

[via Smarthouse]

Analysts see 'ringback tones' part of a $40 billion industry

"Ringback tones" are about to turn into the single largest mobile entertainment revenue source, overtaking mobile ringtones by 2010, according to a new study by analyst group IDC.

"Ringback tones will overtake ringtones in 2010 and become the single largest revenue source for mobile entertainment due to a variety of inherent advantages.

The IDC study, «Worldwide Mobile Entertainment 2007-20011 Forecast», analyzes the opportunity for mobile entertainment services, applications, and content types on a global basis.

[via Beta News]

Virgin Mobile USA: Ringbacks on the rise

According to Virgin Mobile USA and content partner LiveWire Mobile, more than 100,000 customers now subscribe to its Ringback services, with an average of two ringbacks per consumer.

The number of U.S. ringback subscribers tripled last year, based on industry research.

[via FierceMobile Content and Press release]

Ringbacks Could Feature Ad

The number of U.S. ringback subscribers tripled last year, according to M:Metrics. WebPro News reports.

A recent J.D. Power and Associates study also found that 9 percent of U.S. mobile consumers used ringbacks.

IDC estimates that 40 million global users will subscribe to ringback tones by 2010.

"In North America, 10.8 million people are using ringbacks today," said John Orlando, vice president of marketing at NMS Communications LiveWire Mobile. "Places like Spain are north of 10% penetration, India is near 40% and markets like Korea have stabilized around 60%."

In a likely unpopular move ringbacks could include advertisements. Subscribers friends would be forced to listen to the ads. The subscriber would receive discounts on mobile content or free minutes, and the mobile provider would collect the ad revenue."

Related: - Jajah Ring-back tones to carry adverts

"Don't Tase Me, Bro" ringback tone

"Don't Tase Me, Bro," a phrase that swept the nation after a college student used it seeking to stop campus police from throwing him out of a speech by Sen. John Kerry, was named on Wednesday as the most memorable quote of 2007.

Meyer's quote was a symbol of pop culture success. Within two days it was one of the most popular phrases on Google and one of the most viewed videos. It also showed up as a ringback tone on Verizon and T-shirts.

[via Reuters]

Ring-back tones to carry adverts

Wannabe telecommunications company Jajah is planning to replace the ringing tone with recording advertisements, when the user wants them, with the revenue split 50-50 between customer and operator. The Register reports.

"... According to Jajah co-founder Daniel Mattes the average time spent listening to a ringing tone is 12 seconds, time which could be spent listening to adverts provided by Jajah.

The company has signed a deal with advertising brokerage Oridian, and is already pitching the idea to companies that might be interested before launching the service on December 1."

Biz potential of ringback tones still untapped

Next to SMS or text messaging, ring-back tones (RBT) has been touted as a lucrative revenue source for mobile operators. However, based on its uptake across the globe, it seems it has not lived up to its billing - yet.

In a report entitled "SUCCESS; Ringback Deployment and Adoption Best Practices", NMS Communications identified key barriers to subscriber uptake and the historical reasons for slow uptake of any content-based mobile service.

[via America's Network]

Ringback boom…or bust?

Ringback tones have been available from U.S. operators for a year or two, but most carriers are using their marketing dollars to push full-song downloads rather than ringback tones. Fierce Mobile Content reports.

"... Yet, according to a recent survey from M:Metrics, ringback tones have experienced "healthy" growth over the past six months and now have a penetration rate of 5 percent. In fact, M:Metrics stats say that there were 8.4 million ringback tone subscribers at the end of March 2007, up from 2.3 million at the end of December 2005.

Interesting, ringback tones tend to appeal to an older demographic group than those who buy ringtones. Also, males are bigger ringback buyers than females."

Personalized Audio and Video Ringbacks

From a CTIA preview on News.com.

"Openwave, a mobile mini-browser developer, offered a glimpse of its new Audio and Video Ringback Solution.Instead of just playing a song as a ring back, friends sporting a video-enabled phone can also be treated to a short clip of a music video when they get your call.

Openwave plans to formerly launch the new video ringback on Tuesday when the CTIA's fall show officially opens. The company's reps say it's in trials with at least one U.S. mobile operator, but so far are keeping mum on who exactly is testing it. They also wouldn't say which handsets will come ready with the new video ringback capability."

Ringback tones help corporates bond with customers

Companies in India have caught on to ringback tones are are incorporating their signature tone son their employees handsets, according to The Times of India.

"The tone is mostly an ad jingle which has worked so well for the company that it wants to be identified with it.

Sanjay Tikotekar, jt GM, ICICI Bank, says, "The mobile phone is an important device through which the customer interacts with the bank. We felt that by introducing this jingle as a standard ringback tone, we could reiterate commitment to our customers."

Says Naveen Chopra, chief marketing officer, Hutch,"If you are contacting a corporate executive and hear the company tone, you know immediately that you've dialled the right number."

Also, a standardised ringback tone is seen as building affinity inside an organisation. Adds Sanjay Kapoor, jt president, mobility, Bharti Airtel, "Our research has shown that a corporate executive gets a minimum of 30 calls everyday. When both employees and customers hear the same tone, it goes a long way in reinforcing brand identity." .

Relaled in corporate way, and one of my favorite stories:

-- Company song a smash hit on the charts - The corporate song of a Japanese demolition firm, Nihon Break Kogyo, broke into 22nd place of the nation's most influential music charts in December 2003.

McRingback

To help customers chose a ringback tone, Verizon Wireless offers a 7 question quizz to help them figure out their relationship with the person they are assigning the ringback tone to. On Get it NowRingback Tones.

Cingular Releases Answer Tones: Their Version Of Ringbacks

Cingular has announced the launch of their ringback tones wich they call Answer Tones, suggesting you give your callers something to listen to.

Cingular subscribers can even designate the time of day they want their caller's to hear an Answer Tone and assign tones to a specific number, group, or to everyone that may call.

Also, AnswerTones introduces Say My Name Greetings. "You decide what callers will hear when they dial your number... you can even add a personal message and have an artist like Yung Joc, The Wreckers, or Juvenile answer your phone". [via
Gizmodo]

More on Answer Tones on Cingular Website.

Ringback Tone Patent Awarded

Cellular News reports that "nearly two years after the actual introduction of ringback tones by wireless carriers, the U.S. Patent Office has granted fficial patent status to patent filer Karl Seelig, CEO of Perceptive Impression, for ring back signal replacement. (The technology is way over my head, but seems to involve fixed line phones as well.)

"This final step-up from patent allowability affords Perceptive Impression full legal rights to a market projected to run close to US$3 billion in revenue over the next several years."

US Patent 7,006,608 B2

Ring Back Tone Promotes Business

China Broadcast reports on how Chinese people have begun to use ringback tones, to promote business and help manage public affairs.

"A Coloring Ring Back Tone has recently been applied by Pinggu District of Beijing to promote its peach blossom festival this April.

After dialing the cell phones of Pinggu residents before and during the festival, people would hear a popular song praising the beauty of peach blossoms and a recorded message saying "The Eighth Beijing Pinggu International Peach Blossom Festival will open on April 16. We welcome you to join the joy. Pinggu is the world's largest peach growing base with 14,667 hectares covered by peach blossoms this season. Welcome to Pinggu!"

China ringback tones fad rings up big bucks

According to Reuters, "ringback tones -- the sound a caller hears in the seconds they wait for another person to answer -- is big business in China".

" China Mobile, t said in March that "new" businesses, consisting of data and content, grew 59 percent and accounted for a fifth of revenue in 2005, versus 15.5 percent in 2004.

Within that total, ringback tone revenue was one of the fastest-growing segments, quadrupling to 3.42 billion yuan ($427 million) in 2005 from just 848 million yuan the previous year."

Personalized celebrity ringback tones all the rage in Bollywood

Personalized celebrity ringback tones are the latest rage in India, according to Sify.com, who gives us a look at what's playing on the phones of the country's favorite celebs.

"Bipasha Basu gives new meaning to the term wacky. Call her up and you will be greeted by her own voice, frantically searching for her phone. And she asking everyone from her Mom to her dog Poshto where her phone is.

... Apart from dialogues, it is common practice for Bollywood celebrities to have the songs of their latest projects as their ring back tones. Last year, when Tanushree Dutta hit the scene, she had two releases lined up back to back.

Orange UK launches Calling Tunes

Pocket-lint reports that Orange UK has launched ringback tones on Friday, or Calling Tunes.

"Calling Tunes will let users choose music to play to callers while they’re waiting for you to answer your phone. Orange customers can order Calling Tunes as of Friday by visiting the Orange World mobile portal or by calling 477 on any Orange mobile.

According to Orange, Hundreds of music tracks are available to choose from with more added every week ranging from the latest chart hits to film, TV and sports themes."

Free Calls With Advertising Ring-Back Tones

According to mobiledia, PromoTel is testing advertising ring-back tones, which may provide cost-free calling in the future.

"The company will now move forward with plans for a January 2006 field test allowing select customers in target markets to make free, unlimited local and nationwide calls. "

Related article: - Ring-back Tones to Become Advertising Channel

Ringback Tones - "How to"

TECHtionary has issued a press release in geekspeak, giving the how-to to wireless carriers on implementing CRBT-Color Ring Back Tones. Way over my head!

Ring-back Tones to Become Advertising Channel

You pick up a phone. You dial a number. You hear a ringing signal that will continue until the call is answered or you hang up. You are listening to a "ring back" signal that is currently being replaced by music and eventually, advertisements.

If Perceptive Impression has their way, the music will be replaced with targeted advertisements the company creates.

Perceptive Impression claims that "ring back" ads are the newest advertising platform. According to consultancy Ovum, the worldwide market for "ring backs" is projected to grow from US$148 million in 2003 to US$2.4 billion by 2008.

[via Cellular News]