Ringback Tones

The ringback tones are different in various countries depending on the requirements for the ringback specification in those countries. For example, in the NANP (United States, Canada, and others), the standard ringback tones are generated by summing a 440Hz tone with a 480Hz tone and applying these to the telephone line in a 2 second on and 4 second off cadence. The tone combination produces a warbling "ring... ring..." sound, caused by the 40Hz beat between the two. Most other countries use a single tone, as do some PBX and key phone systems. In the UK, it's a signature double beep, which has been made famous by being included at the end of Pink Floyd's "Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2." The ringback tones may be generated by the called-party servicing switch or by the calling-party switch, but it is not generated by the called telephone instrument. It is generally started and stopped at the same rate as the ringing signal itself but perhaps out of phase.

In recent years "personalized" ringback tones have become globally popular. With this feature, callers will hear an audio selection applied to the telephone line that has been previously determined by the called party. Audio selections can include music, messages, and special effects. Equipment is installed in the telephone network to enable replacement of the standard ringback tones with personalized audio selections. The application of the personalized audio selections is accomplished with a subscriber account that can be modified through WWW, WAP, SMS, or IVR user interfaces, as well as by customer care personnel.

Various companies supply personalized ringback equipment for cell phone phone and landline telephone companies. The first operator in the world to start with ringback tones was located in Korea, but today most cell phone operators offer ringback tone services to their customers. The first company to launch a commercial system in the United States was Preferred Voice, Inc. Most global communication companies now have ringback tone equipment provided by several major network vendors including Comverse Technology, Ericsson, and LogicaCMG.

The majority of cell phone operators provide ringback tone services to their customers. Some operators use a multi-country system, with one ringback tone system providing content and subscriber services to each country market. The most notable is Vodafone which has 18 local markets. The rollout was done with LogicaCMG doing most of the system integration, using the MyCaller system from NMS Communications as an ringback tone solution, although some Vodafone operators are using different platforms, such as Comverse's Fun Dial platform used by Vodafone Italy.

The use of such nonstandard telephony signals can cause problems with automatic dialing equipment such as faxes and modems, however lines intended to receive such data telephone calls normally have the proper ringback tone. In addition, a caller may define specific users to whom the personalized content will be played. Other callers will hear the "traditional" ringback tones.