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Crazy Frog Bests Cold Play

Crazy Frog, a mobile phone ringtone, is outselling Cold Play's new single, "Speed of Sound," four-to-one in Britain. Crazy Frog is the first ringtone-inspired tune to rise to the top of the British music charts. Crazy Frog Axel F is a combination of an impersonation of a motor scooter and the Axel F theme song from Beverly Hills Cop. The Guardian has an in-depth report about the origins of this particular ringtone, which has struck such a nerve with Britain's youth:

The ringtone was originally the idea of Daniel Malmedahl, a computer salesman from Gothenburg, whose impersonation of a two-stroke motor scooter reduced his friends to tears of laughter. It was posted on a website where it was discovered by another Swede, Erik Wernquist, a 3D graphics designer, who drew a cartoon to match the sound.

His blue frog with prominent belly button and 1950s-style crash helmet was picked up by ringtone company Jamster and heavily promoted by the company across all mediums. Jamster has made more than Ł10m from people downloading Crazy Frog ringtones.

Its march into mainstream culture was further assisted by the German dance act Bass Bumpers, who combined Mr Malmedahl's invention with Axel F, the theme from the 1984 film Beverly Hills Cop.

Just in case the ringtone fad has passed you by and your cellphone still rings only with the tones that came with the phone, it's time to get with the program. A ringtone is a short audio or music clip played to signal an incoming call on a mobile phone. Different audio clips can be used to represent different callers.

Sales of ringtones at anywhere from $1 - $3 a pop are booming, which is making some big corporations lots and lots of money. Oh yes, and if you don't have a cool ringtone on your cell, you aren't even in the game. Or, you're over 30.

Image: Jamba

Posted on May 30, 2005

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