Verizon to bank on ‘Ringback’ tunes

Ring tones are so yesterday. If wireless companies have their way, the next multibillion-dollar surprise in the cellular business will be “Ringback” tones.

Callers to participating Verizon Wireless subscribers will find themselves listening to a song until the phone is answered.

The service, pioneered by SK Telecom of Korea, is debuting in the United States in California and is slated to be available nationally by mid-2005.

Verizon Wireless is charging 99 cents per month plus an annual fee of $1.99 for each Ringback Tone chosen. Other U.S. carriers are said to be considering a similar service.

Verizon subscribers can assign specific tunes for different callers to hear, choosing among 2,200 songs from 13 music genres provided by Warner Music Group and Sony BMG Music Entertainment.

Retail

Wal-Mart lowers expected sales gains

Weaker-than-expected holiday shopping forced Wal-Mart Stores Inc. on Saturday to cut its projected sales increase for November by more than half, an ominous announcement for retailers as their busiest time of year begins.

The world’s largest retailer estimated that the month’s sales at U.S. stores open at least a year would be 0.7 percent higher than last November, well below the 2-to-4 percent range that the company had said it expected last week.

The new projection was based on four weeks’ worth of sales, from Oct. 30 through Friday, the company said in a statement on its Web site.

According to Wal-Mart, sales were strongest in the categories of bedding, food and pet supplies.

Courts

Judge blocks creditors from seizing United jets

A federal bankruptcy court judge has blocked a group of creditors from repossessing up to 14 airplanes from United Airlines, saving the bankrupt carrier tens of millions of dollars.

Judge Eugene Wedoff issued a temporary restraining order Friday barring the group, represented by the Chicago-based law firm Chapman and Cutler LLP, from seizing up to eight Boeing 767s and six 737s.

The group of financiers, which controls about one-third of United’s fleet, had threatened to seize the planes as early as Dec. 1 because of an impasse over their leases.