News and Research on Linktone, Ltd. (LTON)
Business Description
Linktone, Ltd. provides telecom media, entertainment and communication services (telecom value added services) to mobile and fixed phone users in the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The company also engages in the development, aggregation, marketing and distribution of consumer telecom applications for access by mobile and fixed phone users in the PRC.
The company's 2G SMS-based services include ringtones, icons and screen savers, interactive SMS messaging in certain television programs, adventure, action, trivia and fortune-telling games, lunar and Western horoscopes, POP Messaging, jokes, fan clubs, event-driven or entertainment news updates, and a virtual mobile amusement park called WonderWorld.
The company is also focused on offering 2.5G services, which include MMS services, such as animated cartoons and screensavers, comic strips, magazine-style mobile articles on various topics and event-driven news updates. In addition, the company's 2.5G offerings include WAP services, such as WAP-based ringtones, screensavers, games and dating services, and advanced Java games.
In addition, the company offers audio-related services such as ringback, which replaces the common ring-ring sound heard by callers with music and sound effects, and IVR services, which allow users to listen to songs, jokes, stories and coverage of major events. Users can send such audio content, along with personal messages, to the mobile phones of their friends or others.
The company's services can be purchased on a monthly subscription or per use basis, except for ringback audio-related services from which it derives revenue on a per content download basis while the operator collects a monthly network service fee.
SMS
Ringtones, Icons and Screen Savers: The company's ringtone, icon and screen saver downloads enable mobile phone users to customize the ringtone of their phones and the image which appears on the phone screens.
The company offers approximately 5,000 ringtones which have been tailor-made for the Chinese market with monophonic, as well as polyphonic (which sounds more like real music than the traditional electronic ringing sounds of mobile phones), capabilities. It also offers approximately 10,000 icons and screen savers which range in complexity from simple black-and-white images and monochrome color to color images.
Games: The company offers interactive SMS-based games that can be played on the screens of mobile phones. These games are tailored by its product development department to play on the dial pad of a mobile phone. The company's game offerings include Endless Battle Space, Mobile Pet and Crystal Ball.
SMS Interactive Television Messaging: Through its contractual relationship with STAR TV, and Qinghai TV, the company also enables television viewers to interact with certain programs via SMS messages by, for example, sending an SMS message to vote for the winner of a contest on the program.
WonderWorld: For a monthly admission price, this service offers users access to a mobile amusement park where users take on a virtual identity, are able to interact with one another, and have access to various games, chat rooms, information and other entertaining services.
Information-related Services: The company offers a number of information-related services including POP Messaging which allows users to receive wireless messages containing information regarding one of various categories of topical information, such as fashion, health and beauty. Users can also receive automatic messages from the company on selected topics such as jokes, news and horoscopes.
MMS/WAP/Java
Ringtones, Icons and Screen Savers: The company's MMS and WAP ringtones allow users to create their own customized ringtones. It also offers approximately 8,000 MMS and WAP color images and color animations.
Games: The company offers games based on the Java and Brew programming languages which offer an effective way to create 2.5G games. It also offers WAP-based card games and games of chance such as blackjack, poker and mahjong, as well as WAP-based versions of its SMS games.
Animated Cartoons and Comic Strips: With this MMS and WAP service, users can choose from various animated cartoons and comic strips which they can view on their mobile phone screens. It offers an in-house developed BTPig, an animated cartoon character and various other local serial comic strips which relate to different themes such as holidays, romance and user hobbies and interests.
News and Entertainment Downloads: The company's users can download various event-driven MMS news and entertainment downloads.
Love Genie: With this avatar-based WAP service, users can participate in an interactive virtual community and post information about them, interact with each other, make new friends and arrange dates with other users.
Audio-Related Services
Ringbacks: Ringback allows a mobile phone user to customize the sound callers hear when the user’s phone is ringing. The company supplies various pre-recorded messages from celebrities, sound effects (such as sirens), and a range of popular music.
Voice Entertainment Services: The company provides IVR services, which allow users to send songs, jokes and stories with personal messages to their mobile phones or to the mobile phones of their friends or others. Its IVR services cover such topics as automobiles, jokes, sports, games and Chinese comedies.
Content Relationships
The company's content collaborators include:
2G and 2.5G and Other Services
STAR TV: The company provides wireless interactive services for Channel [V], a regional music video channel, and XKWS, STAR TV’s entertainment channel in China.
Local game manufacturers: The company has licenses from various local game manufacturers to use their games in its services, such as a wireless Java version of the MMORPG game Counter Strike and other games such as Guilty Gear X and Hammer and Sickle.
Shin Chan: The company has sublicensed the Japanese cartoon series, Shin Chan, and have developed localized animated MMS messages and cartoon strips based on the characters from that series.
Audio-related Services
EMI Music: The company is the non-exclusive provider of EMI’s catalog of music, which includes approximately 5,000 songs by popular artists, for ringback services.
Universal Music: The company has a non-exclusive license from Universal Music Mobile HK Limited through its local registered company, to provide Universal Music’s catalog via ringback tones and true tones.
Warner Music: The company has a non-exclusive license from Warner Music Taiwan Limited to provide Warner Music’s Taiwan catalog via ringback tones, true tones and its IVR services.
R2G Company Ltd. (R2G): The company has a non-exclusive license from R2G to use the songs for which R2G has the distribution rights for its ring tone and ring back services.
Competition
The company's competitors include KongZhong Corporation; Hurray! Holding Co., Ltd.; MTone Wireless; Newpalm; Any8; 263.net; TOM Online Inc.; TOM Group Limited; SINA CORP.; Sohu.com Inc.; TENCENT Inc.; Enorbus Technologies; Solute Wireless; Nokia; come2us; Cybird; Yahoo!; Lycos; and AOL.
Subsidiaries
The company’s subsidiaries include Shanghai Linktone Consulting Co., Ltd. (Linktone Consulting); Shanghai Huitong Information Co., Ltd. (Huitong); Shanghai Linktone Internet Technology Co., Ltd. (Linktone Internet); Shanghai Linktone Software Co., Ltd. (Linktone Software); Brilliant Concept Investment Ltd. (Brilliant); Wang You Digital Technology Co., Ltd. (Wang You); Ojava Overseas Limited (Ojava Overseas) and Beijing Ruida Internet Communication Technology Co., Ltd. (Ruida).
History
Linktone, Ltd. was founded in 1999. The company was formerly known as Intrinsic Technology (Holdings), Ltd. and changed its name to Linktone, Ltd. in 2001.
