Log in ....Tribune--Feature article

Monday, February 25, 2002		Article

Symphony for mobiles
H. S. Jatana

OVER a thousand years ago, humans came across a novel idea: instead of singing a single note, they decided to combine two, or several different notes to create a whole new range of sounds. The result was polyphonic sound, which changed the landscape of music altogether, enabling rich sounds that were to be the foundation of modern music as we know it.

From the compositions of Mozart to the three-chord wonders of rock and roll, the invention of polyphony has put music and song into every aspect of modern life. So why should mobile phone users be left behind?

It is now becoming clear that the mobile phone is no longer just a communication tool. It has become a fashion accessory and an expression of individuality. Mobile phone users are personalising their handsets with stickers, customised covers and, of course, ringtones. In restaurants, shopping malls and train stations it is common to hear the familiar theme from the movie Mission Impossible or the latest J-Pop or K-Pop hit as someone receives a call.

Operators the world over are offering ringtone downloads as a standard value-added service. At the same time, hundreds of Web sites are now offering scores of musical interludes that can be programmed into phones from every major vendor.

How it works
16-poly ring tones

1. FM sound source: It sounds variously composed sound tones based on the FM theory. The LSI-FM sound source chip can select from among 128 kinds of tones. The difference between a phone equipped with an existing sound source and another phone with FM sound source is the same as that between organ and synthesizer.

2. SMAF (synthetic music mobile application format) is a multimedia content data format for mobile phones proposed by Yamaha. SMAF format, like the standard MIDI file (SMF), can define the sound pitch, length and screen in which it is expressed.

3. 16 poly sound solution: The 16 poly support chip market is dominated by Yamaha2 and Qualcomn CMX solutions.

Ringtone downloads, together with screensaver downloads, dominate the traffic load on I-mode, the world's most successful wireless data service by Japan's NTT DoCoMo.

The same transition from a monophonic universe to the world of polyphony is now happening. While the ubiquitous ring of traditional fixed line phones is deeply embedded in the minds of people, a revolution is about to spring forth in the mobile industry.

Advanced computing technologies now allow mobile phones to play multi-chord musical passages ranging from orchestral compositions to the latest chartbusters.

Just as competition among handset makers has resulted in ever-smaller and lighter models, the quality of the ringer is now becoming an increasingly important selling point. Advanced wireless data applications now dictate that phones replace monotone beeps with hi-fidelity music.

In response, Samsung Electronics has developed a series of phones capable of realistic sounds. Unlike existing phones, the ring is not mechanically produced. Instead, a natural sound consisting of a 16-chord progression is offered, producing a variety of beautiful tunes. The new phones can now sing to their owners the tune they desire.

This new 16-polyphony-ring tone can give the sound of 16 keys of one instrument simultaneously and, in the same way, the technology is capable of playing four tones from four instruments simultaneously.

So, with 16 poly, as Samsung has named the concept, the number of tones you can express is infinite. This means that the sound of the ring tone will be closer to the original music. For example, 1 poly could be a violin, while 4 poly could be violins, viola, cello and contrabass. Going up the scale, 8 poly could be first violins, viola, cello, contrabass, first piano, second piano and cymbals.

One simple way of looking at the new technology is to compare performance. A phone equipped with conventional sound sources is like a single organ while a phone with the new sound source has the capabilities of a synthesiser that can mirror the instruments of a whole symphony orchestra.

Having lagged behind in Asia in the implementation of the wireless Web, European operators are now in full swing into ringtone downloads. Not only are they reinventing old tunes as ringtones, but some, like Vodafone UK, are also commissioning popstars to come up with new compositions as ringtones. In fact, ringtones are becoming so popular in Europe that market researcher Strand Consult predicts that downloads will account for $2 billion in revenue this year.

For years, competition in the mobile phone sector has been focussed on size, weight and, to some extent, the look and feel of the phone. Today, phones fit into shirt pockets and disappear into purses, leaving competitive differentiation to advanced features like colour screen and sound.

As such, polyphonic sound support has emerged as a major factor when end-users shop for a new handset. In Japan and Korea, all the best-selling phones now have polyphonic sound capabilities.

The arrival of new applications like mobile music download, mobile karaoke, video telephony and multimedia messaging will result in a huge demand for advanced sound capabilities in phones. Without realistic sound, these applications would simply not work. So far, the GSM world is restricted to a scattering of handsets that offer polyphonic sound. It is a situation that Samsung is hoping to change with the launch of a new series of phones for the GSM market.

Together with adding on new sound support, Samsung is also taking the lead in developing innovative services that take advantage of the polyphonic feature. For users who don't want to settle for just another musical tone, the new phones go a step beyond with the ability to sample regular human speech as its ringtone. In this way, users can hear the voice of their child or sweetheart when a call comes. In fact with this sampling feature, almost any type of sound can be adapted for use as the ringer.

Just as the invention of chords gave birth to a new range of sound and music, the addition of polyphonic capabilities to mobile phones will forever change the mobile experience.