M:Metrics: Ringtones and Mobile Music

According to M:Metrics' latest August Benchmark Survey, "although ringtones are universally popular among both males and females, there are significant differences between the sexes when it comes to the types of mobile music downloads."

M:Metrics found that although females are significantly less likely to use most mobile data services compared with males, "they are about 6 percent more likely to download ringtones, representing 52.6 percent of mobile subscribers who purchased at least one in the quarter ended August 2005. Females predominate in certain music genres for ringtones and are 60 percent more likely to purchase a pop ringtone than are males, for example. Males are 68 percent more likely to choose a hard rock or heavy metal ringtone. Overall, hip-hop is the most popular genre across both genders, accounting for 20 percent of all downloads and just beating the rock or alternative category as the most popular genre for males."

Mark Donovan at M:Metrics said, "Mobile phones are used in a social context, and as such the phone a consumer carries makes a personal statement. Mobile phone users—particularly youth and young adults—turn to ringtones as a form of social expression. This data indicates that the female predilection to accessorize extends beyond the material world: women are picking up the hottest pop ringtone like they would a new pair of shoes or handbag. Males, on the other hand, prefer to project their masculinity through their preference for hard rock and non-musical ringtones, such as sound effects and celebrity voices or movie clips."

Other highlights include:

• males are 16 percent more likely to have subscribed to a ringback subscription in August
• mobile subscribers appear most interested in moving music tracks from their computer to their phone, with 12.7 percent indicating they are likely to do so in the coming year
• less than 9 percent of mobile subscribers reported that they were likely to subscribe to a mobile music service in the next 12 months