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Vodafone mobiles sing Looney Tunes

Ben Charny CNET News

Published: 06 Apr 2004 15:55 BST

Vodafone Group will distribute cellphone games, screen savers and ring tones based on Warner Bros. entertainment outside the United States, in the first global agreement between the two companies.

The "made for mobile" offerings will be available in 16 of the 17 mainly European countries, where Vodafone sells cellphone downloads, the companies said on Monday. They won't be available to Vodafone customers in Japan.

For now, the two companies think video is best used to augment games and screen savers, so Warner hits such as "The Matrix" and the "Harry Potter" films won't be cropping up on cellphones any time soon. Vodafone only recently began selling 15- to 20-second video clips, such as news or sports highlights.

Vodafone entered into the deal with Warner Bros. Entertainment, the media giant's strategic digital-planning and marketing arm. The two companies have worked together before -- but only on a limited scale.

Cellphone service providers worldwide are relying more on the sale of ring tones and games, as competition reduces the cost of phone calls, which are still their bread and butter.

While such offerings have become big business in Europe and Asia, United States-based carriers say the US audience for cellphone extras remains disappointing.