Be Cautious of Websites Offering Free Ringtones


by Ian Wright - Date: 2007-02-01 - Word Count: 557 Share This!

It seems everybody these days is talking about new cell phones from Motorola's RAZR to Samsung's new Blackjack to Apple's new iPhone (or whatever it will end being called). In addition to having the latest cell phones, people also seem to want to have the latest ringtones to go along with it. The problem is that buying and downloading ringtones is expensive with most websites and/or cell phone carriers charging $1 or more per download.

If you download many ringtones I am sure you already know that it can quickly add up. Even for people who only occasionally download them it can still be a minor annoyance. So, some rather genius websites have sprung up recently that offer to combine two of people's favorite things: ringtones and free stuff. Thus, I am sure you have probably seen many websites offering free ringtones, but you are probably unsure if they are the real deal or not.

Like most things in life that seem too good to be true, free ringtones are, but that does not mean all free ringtone offers are created equal. However, before I explain any farther I should clarify one very import point about ringtone deals offered in the United States. Due to recent legal cases in the US, most websites no longer use the term free, when advertising ringtone offers. Instead they will use the term bonus or complimentary ringtones instead. You should however be aware that any websites claiming to give "free ringtones", "bonus ringtones" or "complimentary ringtones" are all essentially offering the same thing.

For the vast majority of these websites you will only be able to get your "free" ringtone" after you sing-up (often unknowingly) for some sort of subscription service for your cell phone. You will then be charged a monthly fee to get "free" bonus content," most often more ringtones. In some cases these deals can actually be good for people who want to download a lot of ringtones to their phone. The problem is most people don't want or need to download 10 or 20 ringtones per month. Thus, you end paying for a service you don't need.

There may be some good news though if you are looking to download free ringtones from the internet. Some of the services will give you a free trial period before they will start charging you. In theory then, you could download the ringtones and then cancel your service before you have paid a cent to the company. However, I would be extremely cautious if you try to do this because these companies are not known as being the most straightforward operators. I personally think it is a little too risky but if you want to try it you may be able to get a bunch of ringtones for free.

Therefore, getting free ringtones is possible, at least in theory, but probably not a good idea in practice. Websites claiming to offer free, bonus or complimentary ringtones are more often than not misleading, since they try to get you to sign up for a monthly service you probably don't want without telling you explicitly. Exercise caution and you will save yourself many headaches in the long run.

Ian Wright is a recent university graduate who knows the value of getting things for free. He currently runs a Free Samples Newsletter and a Free Samples Forum.

Related Tags: ringtones, free ringtones

Ian Wright is a recent university graduate who knows the value of getting things for free. He currently runs a Free Samples Newsletter, a New Free Samples Blog, a list of his Top 10 Best Free Samples and a Free Samples Forum. Your Article Search Directory : Find in Articles

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