Ringtones and the Sound of NY
Today NPR delivered a great “story” on the problem with ringtones in New York. The premise, in case you haven’t heard it: the city’s zillions of people and their mobile devices, with their cacophony of sounds, have created cultural chaos on the streets, in the subway and everywhere people have ears. The solution: let NYers choose from one of four officially sanctioned ringtones.
Imagine that. Four perfectly acceptable sounds, considered most acceptable to the ears for all. Four sounds that, ultimately, would speak for the City of New York everywhere its mobility enabled denizens went. Yes, four sounds that are the sonic identity of New York.
Great stuff. I’ll admit the producers had me going for a few minutes until I heard the original compositions, which were just plain…well…foolish. Happy April 1.
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I don’t think people would go for it. Its like saying you can only buy a black or white car. Mobiles are personal and the ringtone is representative of a person. For me personally I hate the different sounds but there is not much you can do.