VringoTM, the next-generation ringtone pioneer, announced today that its free video ringtone application is being pre-linked on global shipments of Sony Ericsson's WalkmanTM phones and promoted via the manufacturer's Fun & Downloads portal, introducing Vringo to millions of new users. New Sony Ericsson owners join a thriving community of Symbian, Java and Windows Mobile users who are already experiencing Vringo's high-quality video ringtones and VringForwardTM technology, which lets users send ringtones to friends just by calling.
This partnership with Sony Ericsson, which was established when Vringo took home a prize at last year's Sony Ericsson Content Awards, is the latest step in Vringo's continuing push toward global availability and monetization of video ringtones. Recently, Vringo announced partnership deals with mobile carriers in Turkey and France that enable users to download the Vringo application and access content, in some cases on a paid-subscription basis.
"Our partnership with Sony Ericsson is unprecedented," said Vringo CEO Jon Medved. "In addition to being the first social video ringtone application to be downloadable directly from Sony Ericsson phones, we're reaching millions of Walkman users-one of the most innovative, media-hungry audiences in the world."
Vringo's application, which is also available for a wide variety of Symbian, Java and Windows Mobile devices via www.vringo.com, lets users create or take video, images and slideshows from virtually anywhere, including Vringo's 4,000-clips-and-counting video ringtone library or the Web, and make them into their personal call signatures.
To access Vringo, Walkman users can find the link prominently displayed in their phone's Web browser. By clicking the link, users will download the Vringo application to their phones and can immediately begin sharing video ringtones with their phone contacts.
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About Vringo
Founded in 2006, Vringo is bringing about the evolution of ringtones. With its award-winning video ringtone application, Vringo takes a sledgehammer to the traditional call signature, transforming the basic act of making and receiving mobile phone calls into a highly visual, social experience.
By installing Vringo's application, which is compatible with more than 200 handsets, users can create or take video, images and slideshows from virtually anywhere, including Vringo's 4,000-clips-and-counting video ringtone library or the Web, and make it into their personal call signature. In a first for the mobile industry, Vringo has introduced VringForward, a technology that lets its users select which video ringtone their friends will see when they call.
Vringo is backed by Warburg Pincus and by private investors. The company has been heralded by The New York Times as "the next big thing in ringtone" and by USA Today as having "to be seen to be believed." To witness the next generation of ringtones and see a list of supported handsets, please visit http://www.vringo.com.