Truetone
Encyclopedia
A truetone is a ringtone which has been encoded with a sampled audio format such as MP3
, AAC
, or WMA
. It is also referred to as a mastertone or realtone.
Ringtones started the mobile content
market by demonstrating a demand for customization, initially amongst teens but then extending into the mass market. The first generation of ringtones were monophonic instrumental renditions of popular and sometimes original tunes. Users could pay to download ringtones to their mobile phones, optionally attaching them to incoming calls from select individuals in their address books. Second generation polyphonic ringtones first became popular in 2002 and encoded sequences of MIDI commands that provided higher fidelity, but these too are purely instrumental. In 2004 ringtones represented a $4 billion global market, almost all of it outside the United States of America.
Realtones have quickly replaced polyphonic ringtones and have taken over the ringtone market. In the second quarter of 2006, realtones accounted for more than 76 percent of mobile consumer spending on music personalization. Although realtones are technically mobile music, their popularity is driven mainly by the need for self-expression rather than standard enjoyment.
Ringtones have also had a dramatic effect on the mobile content value chain. Monophonic and polyphonic ringtones had to be published for each of the phone models, which led to the growth of various successful businesses for companies such as InfoSpace
and Jamba!
, who would both publish the tones and interact with carriers for their distribution and billing. Other international mobile content providers like www.bdmobile.tk competed with them by providing truetones for free. As the market shifted to truetones and the formats standardized to Internet-standard
formats, the added value of such third parties has diminished, and labels have chosen to publish their own songs and interact directly with the mobile carriers for billing and distribution, thereby cutting out these middlemen.
Truetones represent a high-growth revenue stream for the music business, and labels often release the tones before the singles to "prime" the market. Madonna
released her song "Hung Up
" as a truetone before releasing the single. Truetones often outsell singles.
MP3
MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III, more commonly referred to as MP3, is a patented digital audio encoding format using a form of lossy data compression...
, AAC
Advanced Audio Coding
Advanced Audio Coding is a standardized, lossy compression and encoding scheme for digital audio. Designed to be the successor of the MP3 format, AAC generally achieves better sound quality than MP3 at similar bit rates....
, or WMA
Windows Media Audio
Windows Media Audio is an audio data compression technology developed by Microsoft. The name can be used to refer to its audio file format or its audio codecs. It is a proprietary technology that forms part of the Windows Media framework. WMA consists of four distinct codecs...
. It is also referred to as a mastertone or realtone.
Ringtones started the mobile content
Mobile content
Mobile content is any type of media which is viewed or used on mobile phones, like ringtones, graphics, discount offers, games, movies, and GPS navigation. As mobile phone use has grown since the mid 1990s, the significance of the devices in everyday life has grown accordingly...
market by demonstrating a demand for customization, initially amongst teens but then extending into the mass market. The first generation of ringtones were monophonic instrumental renditions of popular and sometimes original tunes. Users could pay to download ringtones to their mobile phones, optionally attaching them to incoming calls from select individuals in their address books. Second generation polyphonic ringtones first became popular in 2002 and encoded sequences of MIDI commands that provided higher fidelity, but these too are purely instrumental. In 2004 ringtones represented a $4 billion global market, almost all of it outside the United States of America.
Realtones have quickly replaced polyphonic ringtones and have taken over the ringtone market. In the second quarter of 2006, realtones accounted for more than 76 percent of mobile consumer spending on music personalization. Although realtones are technically mobile music, their popularity is driven mainly by the need for self-expression rather than standard enjoyment.
Ringtones have also had a dramatic effect on the mobile content value chain. Monophonic and polyphonic ringtones had to be published for each of the phone models, which led to the growth of various successful businesses for companies such as InfoSpace
InfoSpace
Infospace provides metasearch and private-label Internet search services for consumers and businesses.InfoSpace's flagship metasearch site is Dogpile; its other consumer brands are WebCrawler, Nation, DoGreatGood and MetaCrawler.-History:...
and Jamba!
Jamba!
Jamba! is a premium-rate monthly SMS mobile phone content provider, based in Berlin, Germany. In China and the company's English-speaking markets—currently Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States—the company operates under the name...
, who would both publish the tones and interact with carriers for their distribution and billing. Other international mobile content providers like www.bdmobile.tk competed with them by providing truetones for free. As the market shifted to truetones and the formats standardized to Internet-standard
Internet standard
In computer network engineering, an Internet Standard is a normative specification of a technology or methodology applicable to the Internet. Internet Standards are created and published by the Internet Engineering Task Force .-Overview:...
formats, the added value of such third parties has diminished, and labels have chosen to publish their own songs and interact directly with the mobile carriers for billing and distribution, thereby cutting out these middlemen.
Truetones represent a high-growth revenue stream for the music business, and labels often release the tones before the singles to "prime" the market. Madonna
Madonna (entertainer)
Madonna is an American singer-songwriter, actress and entrepreneur. Born in Bay City, Michigan, she moved to New York City in 1977 to pursue a career in modern dance. After performing in the music groups Breakfast Club and Emmy, she released her debut album in 1983...
released her song "Hung Up
Hung Up
"Hung Up" is a song by American singer-songwriter Madonna. It was written and produced in collaboration with Stuart Price, and released as the first single from her tenth studio album, Confessions on a Dance Floor. Initially used in a number of television advertisements and serials, the song was...
" as a truetone before releasing the single. Truetones often outsell singles.