In this Music Biz News update, host James Shotwell shares the history of ringback tones, why they’re going away, and what history will remember about these well-intentioned, but frequently annoying existence. Your existing subscription(s) and any Ringback Tone(s) you purchased from the Media Store will be automatically removed from all lines on your account, and you will no longer be charged a subscription fee for this feature.Ĭonsidering its role in popularizing ringback tones, Verizon’s decision to stop offering them to customers seems telling. An announcement on the Verizon website reads:Įffective October 31, 2020, Verizon will be discontinuing Ringback Tones and Playlists. This week, on August 31, Verizon put what we can assume is the final nail in the ringback coffin with the news the company told customers that it too would cease ringback offerings. The functionality for a brief second wind overseas, but the worldwide sales continued to drop as fewer and fewer people used their phones to make calls. AT&T stopped offering a ringback service in 2011, and Sprint ceased ringback operations a few years later. In 2008, ringback sales began to decline. The clips were popular for a brief moment. You would call your friend to tell them exciting news, but first, you’d sit through a short Kanye West clip. The game-changing tech hit the market in 2004, and by 2006 it was unavoidable. Consumers could change the sound (ring) that played whenever someone called them, which meant musicians and labels could sell short clips of popular songs to replace the traditional ring-a-ling that previously dominated the market. Ringback tones were the opposite of ringtones. It was so popular that Verizon decided to take a chance with ringback tones, and until this October, it was also a success. Once companies knew people would pay for a new ringtone, an entire marketplace of sound came into existence. A great example of this comes from custom ringtones. (Considering that this is a ringback tone, Stevie's message herecould be considered as a hint to the incoming caller.After bringing Ringback Tones to the masses at the turn of the century, Verizon is now killing the once profitable (and always frequently annoying) tech.Ĭapitalism tells us that every idea is only as good as it is profitable. Stevie Wonder's 'I Just Called ToSay I Love You' apparently scores particularly high around Valentine'sDay. People also use them 'to categorize relationships,' since the tones canbe assigned to individual callers. Whilethe most popular ringtones tend to mirror the Billboard charts, shesaid, ringback tone selection tends to be driven by topic and humor. 'It's this outward sharing of your personality,' said Roberts.

The company claims to have invented ringback tones in '02 and currently runs ringback services for 12 cellphone carriers worldwide (Verizon and T-Mobile in the states), so she should know. The functionality difference between ringtones and ringback tones is causing people to choose a different type of music for each, according to Analisa Roberts, senior director of marketing planning and analysis for Real.

My favorite ringback tone belongs to a friend of mine, who uses 'Don't Bring Me Down' by Electric Light Orchestra. The former blasts everyone around you with an example of your excellent or hilarious taste whenever there's an incoming call, while the latter plays only in the earpiece of the people who call you. Despite their apparent similarities, ringtones and ringback tones are quite different animals.

Verizon ringtones and ringback tones