Now, Apple is using iTune to sell Ringtones as well as songs. is this end of Ringtone era? iTune has ringtone converter built in and will convert song to ringtone and it is cost $.99 per ringtone. Well, but for now, it is only working with iPhones, however, they might go after other phones, carriers.

The ringtones business represents an important new source of revenue for the music industry. U.S. ringtones revenues topped $600 million in 2006, up from $68 million in 2003, according to BMI, a collection society for songwriters and publishers.

Worldwide ringtones sales totaled $3.5 billion last year, according to London’s ARC Group, a research firm that tracks the telecom industry.

Apple is the leading retailer of digital music worldwide, selling more than 3 billion song downloads since the launch of iTunes in 2003.

Apple’s ringers are expected to be only compatible with the recently launched iPhone.

Jobs is forecasting that 1 million iPhones will be sold by the end of this quarter. He has also set a goal of selling 10 million phones by the end of 2008.

source:http://www.nypost.com