How to Buy a Ringback Tone

Ringback tones, melodies that play for callers as they wait for a phone to be answered, are the latest craze in the already booming cellphone-personalization industry. They, along with incoming ringtones and graphic wallpaper, allow users to customize their cellphones according to their own styles. You can choose from thousands of different ringback tones that are available for purchase.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Cellphone that supports ringback tones

Buy Ringtones From Your Service Provider

1. Determine whether your provider has a ringback tone service to which you can subscribe. Most major cellphone providers, including Verizon, AT&T and T-mobile, offer this feature, as it is a major revenue stream. Other providers have plans to offer this service in the future.

2. Sign up online for your provider's ringback service. Different providers call their services by different names. For example, T-Mobile's program is called CallerTunes, and AT&T calls ringback tones "answer tones."

3. Browse through your provider's catalog of ringback tones. Typically, there is a wide variety of music available as well as jokes, sound effects and other tones.

4. Preview ringback tones before buying them to make sure you know what you are getting. It's free to preview the tone.

5. Buy the ringtones you like by clicking the "Buy" or "Add to Cart" buttons. Typically, you will be charged a small fee per ringtone and an additional fee as a monthly subscription to the service.

6. Manage your ringtones online through your account with your service provider. You can designate how you want to hear your ringtones and when.

Tips & Warnings

• Buy ringback tones from your phone by sending the identification code for the tone you want to your provider's ringback tone number. Check with your provider for the text number.
• Schedule text-message alerts to tell you when new ringback tones have been released by your favorite artists.
• Ringback tone services are usually available to all phones using the provider. It does not matter whether they are prepaid or not.
• Consider who will be calling your phone when you choose a ringback tone. If you receive calls from both work associates and friends, you might want to choose a neutral ringback tone or program-specific ringback tone options.
• Most ringback tones are only available for one year from the date you purchase them. If you want the same ringtone for longer, you may have to repurchase it.