Ringtones Rise in Sales

It was only a few years ago when everyone had the same ringtone and only five choices to select from. When a cell phone would ring, everyone would scramble for their purses or reach in their pockets. This isn’t the case today where practically everyone has their own tone, unique to their personality and musical tastes.

However, like any new technology, downloadable ringtones can be confusing. What exactly are monophonic, polyphonic and real ringtones? Here is your guide to these different kinds of ringtones:

Monophonic -“Mono” means “one” and this explains the ringtone as being able to play only one, simple sound. Think back to when cell phones first emerged and you heard the same jingle over and over again: that’s monophonic.

Polyphonic -“Poly” meaning “many” or “more than one” explains the ringtone that followed monophonic, but didn’t quite make the grade as a real/full ringtone. It is capable of playing 40 notes at once and sounds much better than monophonic tones. However, it cannot play lyrics.

Real/Full -This is the latest ringtone capability, being able to play MP3, WAV, QCP and AMR file formats. These snazzy ringtones can play lyrics and music simultaneously. Most phones out now are real ringtone compatible.

CNNMoney reported in 2006 that with the increase in ringtone sales, more and more record labels were noticing their sales were rising as well. CNNMoney says, “The record companies are happy for new sources of revenue. EMI Group, one of the world's largest music companies, said that mobile music sales increased nearly 140 percent during the first six months of its most recent fiscal year.”

It isn’t surprising to be walking down the street and hear U2 mixed with a little 50 Cent in the background. Mobile ring tones are promoting all kinds of artists and therefore, record labels. It’s a win-win situation in a way.

Consumers get to hear their favorite songs whenever they receive a call and the artist is advertised on-the-spot. The next time your phone rings and you can sing along instead of humming, remember it was only several years ago when this wouldn’t have been possible!