What are Ringbacks?
Ringbacks are segments of songs that are used with cell phones. When a person calls someone with ringbacks, he or she hears a song the cell phone subscriber specifically programmed for that caller. Instead of hearing the traditional ring while waiting for the person to answer the phone, the caller enjoys the personalized song provided by ringbacks. In order for ringbacks to work, the cell phone subscriber must program the phone to recognize the caller’s phone number. Then, the subscriber programs the phone to play a specific song for the caller as he or she waits for the phone to be answered. In other cases, a cell phone subscriber may select a single song to play for all callers, rather than personalizing the ringbacks. Ringbacks are not the same as ringtones, as ringtones are the sounds the cell phone subscriber hears when receiving a phone call. Ringbacks are not necessarily heard by the cell phone subscriber, but rather by the caller. Although ringbacks are of radio-quality, they a
