by: Samuel Miton

The ringtone industry is striking a popular cord with the teenage market. This group, mostly 13 to 24-year-olds, likes to purchase their favorite tune or sound without paying the high price for a CD. This segment isn’t afraid to drop lots of discretionary income to download monophonic or polyphonic sounds, which makes the ringtone industry very happy.

According to RealityTVWorld.com, today’s teens are willing to substitute cell phone minutes for the latest ringtone. This behavior places this age group in the largest population of ringtone purchasers. Since over 40% of cell phone users fall into this group and have disposable income, the ringtone industry is making the most of this opportunity. The market is so large among this young population that, according to a study by Wireless World Forum, young people are spending eight times more on mobile phones than music. Currently, trends in the U.K. show that the ringtone market holds 10% of the total music market. This population’s buying power is equally impressive in the United States where teenagers spend nearly as much on ringtones as on text messaging. The sale of ringtones worldwide adds up to $3.5 billion, according to IT Facts online (http://www.itfacts.biz).

Naturally, the music industry isn’t highly thrilled about this shift in sales from the more expensive CD to much less expensive ringtones - even though the publisher or songwriter of the music or tone is entitles to royalties. Still, a ringtone royalty isn’t quite as high of a percentage as a CD royalty. Some future analysts of this market are predicting that the mobile phone and ringtone industry are going to dip even farther into the music industry by giving mobile phones technology similar to iPods.

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by: Peter Lenkefi

If you asked 100 people the factors that drive their choice of a cell phone, 80% would say the ringtone or the flashy design. Though personal preferences may determine how we buy our mobile phones, it is considered prudential that we factor other elements into our purchase decisions so we derive full value for our money and do not rush into extra expense after using the device.

Buying a simple device like a cell phone can be an overwhelming experience. The device may cost just a few hundred Dollars but there are so many of them on the market and each company is inundating the television and newspaper with so much publicity.

But in the face of all the ad tactics, consumers can work out their own checklist and then screen off manufacturers who do not conform to them.

Let’s try to see some of the factors you may have to consider when making a decision to acquire a handset:

How deep is your budget? You should examine your funds and determine whether the phone you have set your eyes on is affordable. You may want to note that an affordable or cheap phone may have all the features you are looking for. Generally phones which sell for $100 and below are quick bulky, have minimal features and have sharp edges. If you are on low budget, seeking second hand phone or simply want basic features, this is the area you may have to venture.

Phones priced $300 thereabout are usually sleek, come with web features and may have voice dialing features. Some may have dual band characteristics and calendars.

Phones selling for $300 and over are the smallest in design, come with advanced features like cameras, video, mp3 capabilities, voice recorders and radio.

You may also have to critically examine the features of the phone to see if they appeal to you and will serve your objectives. If you would like to record appointments, then you may need a phone with an appointment setter or calendar.

If you a traveler, you may have to buy a dual band phone. You may also have to consider dual mode, that is a phone that will work for both analog and digital services. You would also need to get a phone that will accept double SIM so you can have access to multiple services without changing SIMs.

If you are the busy type , you will have to look for phones with long lasting battery and long talk time so you can carry for long without recharging.

Internet users will have to go for phones with more lines of display that is a bigger screen to display about 6 lines so they can be able to read text without much discomfort and too much scrolling.

Buying a cell phone handset is not a chore at all but it is helpful for one to find one that will meet the pocket and at the same time satisfy lifestyle and business objectives.

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by: Bob Bentz

When it comes to ringtones, the battle of the sexes continues. While ringtones are universally popular with both males and females, females tend to purchase them more, according to a recent study by M:Metrics.

The measurement firm reports that 11.6 million American females downloaded a ringtone in August compared to 9.9 million American males. There’s also a difference in the genre of music that the sexes prefer. Females purchased 66% of the pop ringtones sold and 65% of the country ringtones sold. Not surprisingly, males dominate in the testosterone-laden world of heavy metal and hard rock ringtones where males purchase 68% of such ringtones.

The findings are not a surprise to Anthony Wayne who publishes the Cool Ringtones Blog (www.coolringtones.blogspot.com). “Males were the early adopters of ringtone technology, but now ringtone providers are seeing their largest orders being placed by females who want to accessorize their cell phones the same way that they accessorize their outfits. Ringtones provide personalization and a fashion statement to females and allow males to project their masculinity to those around them.”

The most popular kind of ringtones is rap ringtones; 6.7 million Americans downloaded a rap ringtone in a recent month. The next most popular categories are rock or alternative ringtones, pop ringtones, TV/movie/game theme ringtones, and classic rock ringtones. Rounding out the top 10 ringtone genres are country ringtones, hard rock and heavy metal ringtones, voice ringtones, oldies ringtones, and dance or electronic ringtones.

“Ringtones are all about making a personal statement of who you are, especially in the teen and young adult demographics,” said Wayne. And 22 million Americans are making personal statements every month.

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by: Kingston Amadan

When making use of telephone bugs, it can be very frustrating to be constantly checking, only to find that you missed a call. You have a busy life. Other things to do, other clients to work for, a life to live. You can’t just be sitting there trying to play hit and miss with telephone bugs. This is where the new generation of bugs comes in. It is possible to use a bug that will actually call you when a phone call is made. That way you need not miss a conversation that you cannot afford to miss.

Traditional bugs require that you listen to the transmissions or call in to see if a call is being placed. Additionally, some telephone bugs only allowed you to hear one end of the conversation. Neither of these things is very savory, nor do the provide help to you as you frantically try to listen in at just the right time. Additionally, many transmitters run the risk of being found as they transmit the signal out. With telephone bugs that call you, you can listen to both ends of the conversation, and receive notification when a call is placed or received by your subject.

The first telephone bugs that work in this manner are bugs that look like cell phones. You plug them in to share the same line as the regular phone, and they look like they were forgotten or like they are charging. These phones can be programmed to silently ring your preferred number whenever the home phone goes off. And it is set up so that when you pick up to listen in, you are listening as if you were on another phone in the house (just like mom and dad did when you called home from college). You hear both ends, and neither party is the wiser.

Other telephone bugs that can be programmed to call you are more high tech cell phones. You give the phone to the subject (or have your client do so) and then you wait. These phones work like regular cell phones. The person talks normally and receives calls normally. But every time he or she uses the phone (place or receive) the phone dials you and lets you know.

No matter which product you choose, you don’t have to miss a call when you are called by your telephone bugs.

(c) 2005 Copyright www.spyassociates.com. This article is about: Telephone Bugs.

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by: Emily Sims

A quick Google search will produce countless articles trying to understand the popularity of ‘ringtones’; hundreds of bloggers waxing lyrical on the benefits of personalising their cell phones. Interviews with “experts” profering sexy theories about ringtones and identity construction lend an academic seriousness to the Crazy Frog phenomena. The figures are pretty serious too, in the U.S.A. alone, the Yankee Group predicts, ringtones will be worth $500 million. That’s roughly the GDP of Fiji.

Obviously our cell phones needs a voice, but does that voice need to be a polyphonic adaptation of ‘Living on a Prayer’?

The latest figures indicate that young people are the greatest consumers of mobile music. According to one UK survey, 15-24 year olds account for 80% of ringtone spending. Studies by Nick Anderson of Sussex University show that young people are far more aware of the “brand personalty” (the particular identity affiliated with certain brands) than older generations. Anderson suggests that teenagers can deduce a person’s character, likes and dislikes, by their branded possessions. Considering the amount of branding in the music industry, it’s not unreasonable to say that popular musicians have their own “brand personality”. So, your 50 Cent ringtone, for example, communicates not only a your taste in music, but also your compliance to the whole ‘Fiddy’ meme. Ultimately, for brand savvy youth, this says something about your personality, which, you hope, everybody within earshot understands.

If a cell phone rings in the woods but nobody is around to hear it, are you still down with 50 Cent? Ringtones are about personalization, and about public performance. The publicness of the ringtone is an integral part of its appeal. It’s unlikely that anyone would have a ringtone on their landline. In a noisy urban soundscape like the city, silence is an anomaly. Personalised ringtones are simply another irritating sound in the hullabaloo. Most of us manage tune out the sounds imposed on us: muzak, hawkers, traffic, the O’Reily factor, so why try and impose yet another squawk? Perhaps the ringtone is the audio equivalent of territorial pissing; thirty seconds in which YOU pick the soundtrack. For a few moments when your cell phone rings the 50 Cent meme is the most powerful in the sonic environment. Where “Fiddy” is relatively redundant as a social force, certain ringtones allow citizens to demonstrate their dissatisfaction or support of a cause. Independent radio station WFMU have created a variety of anti- George W. Bush ringtones available for download, while engadget.com allows users to choose their preferred presidential candidate ringtone. Condemning other commuters to several cycles of 50 Cent, the theme from ‘Star Wars’ or a Dubya quote demonstrates your individual tastes and allows others distinguish you as either nemesis or brethren.

In our efforts to relieve poverty, impede environmental disaster or cure the global AIDs epidemic, ringtones are totally and utterly useless. When it comes to enforcing the myth that every individual is special, the artificial uniqueness of a personalized ringtone is just the ticket. Paradoxically, this demonstration of individualism is only really effective in a crowd. As far as this writer’s concerned the real purpose of ringtones lies in their ridiculousness. A recent gathering of sensible adults turned to hilarity thanks to an improvised game of “Name that tune”. Using Foovely’s ringtone preview function, those gathered took turns choosing snippets of songs for the party to guess. Recognising a song in 30 seconds is SO much harder in monophone!

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