What is a ringback tone?
     A ringback tone is the audible (听得见的) ringing that is heard on the telephone line by the calling party after dialing and before the call being answered at the distant end. It is a feature of the network, not the phone. The tone can be music, messages, and special effects. Different from a ringtone, it rings for the caller to enjoy instead of informing the receiving party of an incoming call.
In Korea
    Korea, a very modern country, is the very birthplace of ringback tones. At present, ringback tones are typically popular songs. The FIFA World Cup in July 2006 enabled many ringback tone singers to gain their fame. A bright future awaits ringback tones, and video ringback tones will soon appear.
In Japan
    Japan got the idea from Korea and its ringback tone business began to boom in 2003. The ringback tones are usually the peak part of a song, lasting just 15 seconds for fear of bringing heavy burden to the communication network.
In America
    The ringback tone business didn’t gain popularity until two years ago in America. Subscribers (用户) now tend to choose celebrity (名人) words as their ringback tones. Arnold Schwarzenegger, the governor of California, is frequently quoted in ringback tones.