Muzicall, a European provider of Ringback Tone services, has signed a deal with Fox Mobile Group, a distributor of mobile content, to deliver Ringback Tones – the sound that replaces the traditional ringing a caller hears when calling a mobile phone – to Swiss mobile phone customers.
Previously, Ringback Tones were only available to consumers directly from operators. Through the partnership with Fox Mobile Group, users will have access to a wide range of Ringback Tones from various genres. Swiss consumers are said to be the first in any European mobile market to be able to buy Ringback Tones from a direct-to-consumer outlet, such as Fox Mobile Group.
“Our deal with Fox Mobile Group represents the realisation of Muzicall’s vision for Ringback Tones; we have established a complete Ringback Tone ecosystem in Europe for the first time,” said Patrick Allainguillaume, CEO of Muzicall. “Until now the popularity of Ringback Tones in Europe has not been maximised because they have only been available on operator portals. Now they will be available from the same place where most consumers already buy music, ringtones, games and other mobile content. This will boost consumer awareness of Ringback Tones – and it is proven that when awareness increases so do sales.”
The realisation of Europe’s first off-deck Ringback Tone ecosystem means the popularity of RBT services are now poised to match that of other parts of the world and follows the prediction of analysts IDC that “ringback tones will overtake ringtones in 2010 and become the single largest revenue source for mobile entertainment”. Current estimates suggest that only three per cent of European consumers have a Ringback Tone whereas the global average is 14 per cent, according to Portfolio Research. In some parts of Asia, the off-deck availability of mobile content, including Ringback Tones, has helped push RBT penetration up to a staggering 40 per cent. The availability of off-deck Ringback Tones through Fox Mobile Group is the first in a planned series of rollouts by Muzicall aimed at maximising the awareness and availability of Ringback Tones in Europe.
“We are delighted to work with Muzicall to provide Ringback Tones to Swiss mobile phone customers and we are proud that we are the first off-deck provider of Ringback Tones in Europe,” said Robert Derow, Senior Vice President Global Media at Fox Mobile Group. “We are very happy, to provide Swiss mobile phone users with this special mobile service. We are looking forward to working with Muzicall to make Ringback Tones a huge success in Switzerland and looking forward to offering the service in other European markets together with Muzicall.”
Ringback tones typically consist of music, however, the customer can also choose from TV and movie themes, sound effects and numerous other sounds, even advertising. Muzicall’s RBT.4.ALL platform enables customers to create their own content library, giving them the ability to assign a different tune for different callers.