Flycell - Alberto Montesi This man can't make an honest buck so he steals it from you Ripoff New York City New York

Read about what the CEO of Flycell has to say about the ring-tone industry. Its hard to make an honest buck, so he went and found a way to steal money from you. These are his words from an online interview I found using his name as a google search term.

August 15, 2005
(((Redacted)))Interviews My Boss, Flycell CEO, Alberto Montesi

Reading about the man in the office 10 feet away is a bit surreal. (((Redacted))) interviewed Flycell CEO, my boss, Alberto Montesi. It is nice to see that we have share the same sentiments when it comes to the carriers and content licensors.

"Mobile content providers are having a pretty tough time at the moment as bigger players take large slices of the mobile content pie, and companies keen to sell mobile music have a particularly tough time. Labels and publishers are not helping the growth of the market, said Alberto Montesi. They're asking for too high a revenue share, and a minimum guarantee for each download which is really high. He reported that the labels typically ask for around 50% of the end-user price, which is about 100% of the money received by third-party sellers after the mobile carriers take their share. The labels also require a minimum of $1 per download, which already puts the price at double that which customers are used to paying on the internet."

The carriers and the music industry (content owners) hold the keys to the kingdom. Companies like Flycell are at their mercy. They control pricing, delivery standards, opt-in methods, dicate what is appopriate content, and even our marketing copy. The moco scene in the US is an ever-changing landscape these days; especially with the arrival of broadband and multimedia capable phones. I hope that we soon settle on a business model which works for the carriers, content owners (music companies), and content providers (Flycell); that way I can sleep easier at night knowing that the fate of my employer does not rest in the hands of those who dictate our costs. Which brings me to the same question I've asked myself since starting here in June: Why does it cost me $1.99-$2.99 for a low-fidelity, 30 second ringtone (true or poly), when I can download the same song as a full length, hi fidelity, mp3 for $.99? There must be an error on an excel spreadsheet somewhere.

Jackchgo
Chicago, Illinois
U.S.A.