FCW Insider: Government ring tones

One of my favorite blogs -- a DC media blog called Fishbowl DC -- has something called the Fishbowl DC Interview. One of the questions they ask is, "What is your ring tone?" Well, now your answer can be lion, or tiger, or even bear... or Zebra, even.

The Smithsonian's National Zoo is now selling ring tones of various animal sounds -- $2.99 each.

From the release:

The 11 Zoo-animal ringtones also feature an African lion, cheetah, giant anteater, white-cheeked gibbon, golden lion tamarin, Grevy’s zebra, Asian small-clawed otter, and adult giant pandas Tian Tian and Mei Xiang. Other wildlife ringtones, including a gray wolf’s haunting howl and a bald eagle’s high-pitched screeches, are available courtesy of Conservation Calling, a collaborator on the program. The wood thrush, D.C.’s official bird, and the state birds of Maryland (Baltimore oriole) and Virginia (Northern cardinal) are also available.

Animals vocalize to defend territory, attract a mate, signal danger or distress, and for a variety of other purposes. Understanding these signals is vital to understanding animals’ lives and behavior and thus an important aspect of the Zoo’s animal care and research. The vocalizations available as ringtones were recorded by Zoo keepers, scientists, and staff for research projects, educational displays, and specifically for this program.

• Prices have declined
• Attempts to reach relatively older demographics have been unsuccessful
• Most new content category growth occurs at the expense of growth of traditional ring tone formats: Young consumers have limited budgets
• Piracy issues and availability of free online content concern many executives, according to interviews conducted by JupiterResearch
• Third-party and pure-mobile players have relatively lower margins on real tones, tending to decrease advertising pressure that had stimulated the market as a whole

I’m a gadget guy, so I’ve downloaded a few on to my iPhone. Right now, I’m using Elvis’ “A Little Less Conversation” – JXL remix version, to be precise, but I may soon move on to Madonna singing “Hung up” (cute, hmmm?)… Nina Simmon’s “Sinnerman” (the Felix Da Housecat’s remix).