PERSONAL CHOICE

Analysts say the tones, which typically cost just 2 to 3 yuan apiece, with monthly subscription fees of about 5 yuan, are seen by many Chinese as a way to express their personalities.

The service, which targets the country's 400 million cellphone subscribers -- the largest of any single market worldwide -- has plenty of personality to draw on.

In a country where a handphone is both a communication device and a fashion accessory, the tones are the latest form of personal expression.

Chinese cellphone stores now brim with hundreds of models of various handsets in all shapes and sizes, allowing buyers to choose from a huge array of colors, styles, forms and functions.

The trend has accelerated over the last few years, with many Chinese choosing phones that look masculine, feminine, sporty or delicate, and decorating them with various trinkets, including pictures of pop stars and soft toys.

Ringback tones are just the latest extension of that trend.

In the past year, 30-year-old accounting manager Jiang Fang in Xian has downloaded dozens of tones from chirpy pop tunes to soulful ballads. She once chose "Been a bit upset lately."

"I change my ringback tones pretty often, once every few days," she said.