The whipping post

It’s getting a little embarrassing. See, Apple is essentially trouncing the wireless industry with a long and growing list of new, user-friendly innovations. These innovations stretch from the hardware side of the equation (the iPhone’s accelerometer) to the software side (the iPhone’s visual voicemail).
And that’s just the beginning, it seems. Last week Apple announced a wireless version of its iTunes music store. Users with Wi-Fi-capable iPhones or iPods can now download music via Wi-Fi. There was no mention of a cellular connection to iTunes, but certainly that’s a feature under discussion in Apple’s Cupertino headquarters.
Also last week, Apple announced a custom ringtone feature for its iPhone users. For an extra 99 cents, iPhone users will be able to create ringtones from music they purchase via Apple’s iTunes store. Apple said it offers more than a million tunes that will work with the new ringtone service, and users will be able to select any 30-second portion of their chosen song and turn in into a ringtone. Further, users will be able to edit the ringtone, creating fade-in and fade-out effects.
Pretty neat service, huh? My question is: Why did it take this long for someone in the industry to introduce this kind of service?
After all, ringtones have been around for years, and sales of ringtones represent a major portion of most carriers’ wireless data revenues. But most carriers today still offer a 2002-era ringtone service: Browse a nightmarishly long list of tones via your phone, and then download one for $2.50. Even carriers that offer full-song downloads have neglected to add a ringtone component to their service.
It’s true that you can go elsewhere to make ringtones from your personal music collection (Myxer-Tones.com is a good location for this activity) but why isn’t this sort of service available from the big guys?
My point is that Apple-an upstart newcomer to wireless-is running circles around established, entrenched players. The feat is especially notable considering recent flame-outs in the handset market such as BenQ, Sendo and Sierra Wireless’ smartphone efforts.
Ultimately Apple and the iPhone will be good for the wireless industry, as it likely will push things along and inspire the competition. But in the meantime, I must say I’m a little embarrassed to watch all of the wireless industry’s heavyweights get so thoroughly whipped.