Hip-Hop Hotline

Posted: 2/2004

Hip-Hop Hotline

Rapper and hip-hop artist Jay-Z is capitalizing on the
customized cell phone craze by working with Nokia to produce a special edition
of the Nokia 3300 music phone called the Black Phone, which comes preloaded with
Jay-Zs recently released Black Album on a multimedia card for MP3 playback. It features exclusive
Jay-Z True Tones (ring tones that sound like music) and wallpapers. Registered owners of the Black Phone will receive weekly text
messages and monthly voice messages from Jay-Z for a limited time.

The Black Phone retails for approximately $124 (after mail-in
rebates) at select Sam Goody and Media Play stores throughout the country. The Black Phone also has a digital music player that supports
MP3 and AAC, stereo FM radio, a music hot button and a full messaging keyboard.

Teaming with Nokia to develop the Black Phone provides me
with a deeper connection to my fans through my music and mobile messaging, Jay-Z says.

Overheard…

At the core we are wireline replacement;
we dont have the shackles of potential [wireline]
cannibalization.

Pete Thompson, director of marketing for T-Mobile HotSpot,
talking about the mobile carriers commitment to the Wi-Fi business compared
to traditional telcos at the Wi-Fi Planet Conference in San Jose in December
2003.

Thats the Ticket

Beginning this month, a select number of transit passengers in
Germanys Vogtland region can buy tickets via their mobile phones. Until April, 350 pre-selected people will test the process.
They will register by telephone, and then have access to traditional paper
tickets and two mobile alternatives for travel in the triangle between the Czech
Republic and the German states of Thuringia, Bavaria and Saxony.

Payment will be handled by bank draft during the pilot period,
but later versions will offer payment through phone bills, credit cards or
prepaid cards.

The Vogtland Public Transit Association commissioned Siemens
Business Services to devise a pilot solution for electronic ticketing. The association expects the project for a pocket-sized
ticket machine the first of its kind in Germany to help lower costs,
increase revenue and improve customer loyalty.

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