NY Post: Apple to begin selling iPhone ringtones

The rumor is the RIAA considers ring tones a "public performance" of a work and thus subject to a different set of licensing rules. Apple will have to at least charge you the same fee for the ring tone as it did the song (or something very close), effectively doubling the cost of the song.

I use a SonyEriccson W810i (Walkman) that, in its unlocked state can play any MP3 as a ringtone. In its AT&T locked-down state, it cannot. I must purchase a ringtone from AT&T through an interface that does not permit hearing the tone first. (seriously.)

Apple will create a cute interface to help you create a 30 sec ringtone and that'll be nice. But you're still getting ripped off.

If I get my highly discounted Walkman phone unlocked (after the contract period), I will be able to play any song as a ringtone. Sadly, iPhone owners have purchased their phone for full price and are still denied this basic, expected feature.

Buy a premium product, expect to pay a premium price.

Sorry, folks, but you're not getting it. The folks on this forum represent about .00001% of iPhone (and other Apple products users). If you think for a nano-second that the majority of the iPhone-owning population would even consider downloading a hacking application, tinkering with the innards of their phones, risking software problems, etc., to save a buck or two for a ringtone you're absolutely nuts.

Wrap your arms around this: Not everyone is a geek. Some people would rather spend the cost of a latte on easily getting a ring tone onto their phone instead of having to go through the gymnastics to do it themselves.

I've been starting businesses in the wireless industry for 25 years (see my blog at http://www.TheWirelessWizard.com) and can tell you that what people are willing to spend their money on never ceases to amaze me.

Just my 2 cents.

i use www.create-ringtone.com to make and send custom ringtones, wallpapers, MP3's and Videos to cell phones around the world

this is crazy. get a Fugu for Mac or WinSCP for Windows. Jailbreak your phone and these apps transfer ringtones for free.
put files is /var/root/Library/Ringtones

Get MP3Trimmer to chop up your mp3's. awesome software! quick and easy!

amen!.. they should have included this to begin with. ITUNES STORE DOESN'T HAVE ANY OF THE BANDS I LISTEN TO!

I will not be paying for a song twice, thats for sure. I agree with a few comments above regarding ease of use and all that, so lets see what they give us. I'll be disappointed if it's a "pay to convert" option on ONLY songs purchased in iTunes.

I hope this is not true, but since Apple is a music seller and AT&T is a cell phone provider (i.e. will do anything technologically possible to drain the customer's wallet), it does make business sense for them to do that.

I hate the idea that digital property doesn't ever belong to us, even when we own it. I have thousands of MP3s in iTunes that came from CDs I bought 10+ years ago, in a store. How are they not my property? Why am I not allowed to put them on a phone that I have also purchased?

I hope that what's meant by this is that for a small fee, Apple will take the work out of making a ringtone for you, and give you a nice little GUI to select what portion of the song you want, and will install it for you right through iTunes. I don't mind that, if you're too lazy to make your own ringtone, some people might just find it easier to pay a few cents. But I hope they won't try to prevent you from creating your own file from an MP3 or whatever and putting that onto your phone if you want.

I hope this is what they're thinking of, because I have great respect for Apple and like to think that they put making good products above making the most possible money, and it would make me sick to see them behaving like Verizon and AT&T.

Show me another carrier and/or music service thats giving away free ringtones. Not a website. a music service or carrier. I'm sure you'll be able to apply your own ringtones or make them yourself if you know how. If not apple will help you do it. Just not for free. Why is that wrong exactly?

C

And Apple is not greedy

"From a user perspective, however, the prospect of paying even more to turn I song I already bought into a ringtone is asinine, especially considering that there are free methods for getting ringtones on your iPhone."

There are also free ways to the songs in the first place, but people still buy from iTunes.

@21

Actually, it's the New York Post. HUUUUGE difference. But your point is still correct (even more so, considering it's the Post).