And welcome to a special CTIA Wireless I.T. & Entertainment 2006 edition of our column, Worst of the Week. There’s a lot of nutty stuff that goes on in this industry—especially at trade shows—so this column is a chance for us at RCR to rant and rave about whatever rubs us the wrong way. We hope you enjoy it!
And without further ado:
The amount of news is starting to slow, my feet hurt and I needed three cups of coffee to get out of the hotel this morning. It must be Day 2 of the show. Ug.
But at least there’s some interesting stuff going on to keep me awake. RealNetworks acquired WiderThan for the paltry sum of $350 million. The deal includes a number of notable angles, but perhaps the most interesting is how it will give RealNetworks access to WiderThan’s successful mobile music play—specifically, its ringback tones service.
Ringbacks, as I’m sure you’re all aware, replace the traditional ring that a caller hears with music and other noises. The first time you hear a ringback tone it can be extremely unsettling, but the more you encounter them… the more they annoy you. I know one industry PR person who exclusively uses ringback tones from ‘90s boy bands—it’s both aggravating and hilarious, in equal parts.
If I were to use a ringback tone (of course, the only way I would actually use one is if they were free) I would make sure it was something mellow and relaxing, like Pantera’s “Cowboys from Hell” or something. Ah, Pantera.
“Step aside, we’re the cowboys from hell!”
The only problem is, if I had a ringback tone my parents would never call me because they wouldn’t be able to figure out why my phone number screams at them.
But the RealNetworks-WiderThan deal isn’t the only bit of news coming out of the show:
–New York City, the greatest city in the world, is going to use IPWireless’ technology to build a $500 million network for police, firefighters and other public-safety agencies. Perhaps New York officials know something that Sprint Nextel does not, since Sprint Nextel chose WiMAX over IPWireless’ UMTS TD-CDMA for its 2.5 GHz network? Either way, it looks like New York City would rather build and own its public-safety communications network rather than rent it from Verizon Wireless.
–Starwave Mobile has content-licensing deals with Sony BMG for singer Beyonce and with Universal Mobile Entertainment for the film “Scarface.” I wonder if Starwave will combine those two licenses into some kind of Beyonce/Scarface game. Indeed, the possibilities are limitless.
–Muscleman Arnold Schwarzenegger (who is also the most powerful elected official in this state) talked about how cell phones today are similar to the high-tech gadgets his character used in the ‘80s movie “Total Recall.” What’s also interesting is that right now, sitting on Mr. Schwarzenegger’s desk, is a bill that would ban driving and talking on a cell phone throughout the state of California. I wonder if it was also illegal to talk and drive in the Mars outpost in “Total Recall?”
And finally, the most important information I can give you today: the CTIA party list. Enjoy.
The CTIA Mobile Entertainment Reception
Wednesday
5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Figueroa Hotel
939 S. Figueroa Street
MEF party
Wednesday
6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Tangier Room
Figueroa Hotel
939 S. Figueroa St.
For members only
SinglePoint party
Wednesday
7 p.m. to midnight
The Derby
4500 Los Feliz Blvd.
