Ringtone sales might be on the slide, but mobile operators are still interested in signing exclusive deals with big artists.
Witness Verizon Wireless' announcement that it will be previewing every track on the new album by Pearl Jam by selling exclusive ringtones in the run-up to its release.
Two are available already on Verizon's music portal, with one more to be launched every week until 17th September, when the final three tones go live. The album, Backspacer, is released on the 20th of that month.
Verizon has been active in signing exclusive music deals in recent times: this year alone, it's worked with Green Day, Keith Urban and Motown.
Meanwhile, in January, Verizon became the first digital music service to sell remastered full-track downloads from Pearl Jam's classic Ten album.
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