New Order uses Bluetooth posters to send music clips direct to cellphones

The marketing campaign for the upcoming New Order (yes, that New Order — Blue Monday, anyone?) album, Waiting for the Sirens Call, marks an innovation in music promotion, with the development and display of digital interactive posters offering song clips, ringtones and photos that can be beamed directly to fans' cellphones. The posters use both infrared and Bluetooth to send the data directly to phones, bypassing network charges to fans or to the band's label, and making New Order to first group to hand out free music clips direct to cellphones. The digital posters will be displayed in HMV stores in London and Manchester in the UK, sweeties — who said there's no such thing as a free ringtone?

[gopi @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

Last time I was in London, I saw a poster about late-night safety. There was a phone number you could call - as well as an IR beacon to send the contact via IrDA to your phone.

When I got my first Newton MessagePad in 1994 and saw the "receive beams automatically" checkbox for IR, I wondered when I'd see advertising beacons for it. It's taken a decade, but we're finally there.

[David Stennett @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

New Order, the Phoenix out of the ashes Joy Division (w00t, w00t!) is still kicking it? Smooooovvvvvvvvvvv .... looks like Hypertag (www.hypertag.co.uk) is making some head-way in the UK -- cool.

[asidrephlux @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

Creative and smart. I think they should also include a random Joy Division (w00t, w00t!) ringtone too, just for the fark of it.

[narco @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

You know, because of the last two posts, whenever I put in the "Unknown Pleasures" CD, I am now going to think in my head "w00t w00t." Thanks, thanks a *$*(#(* lot.

Fishes,
narco.

[Sebhelyesfarku @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

yeah this 'w00t w00t' shit is the sure sign of the retard

[eye @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

In case any readers are wondering where the name Joy Division comes from, look it up on Wikipedia.
"The Joy Divisions, appearing in Ka-tzetnik 135633's 1955 novel, The House of Dolls, describes a group of Jewish women in the concentration camps during World War II who were kept for the sexual pleasure of Nazi soldiers."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joy_Division_%28World_War_II%29

The Third Reich was described as the New Order. Life is full of co-incidences, ain't it.

[Taury @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

Wow, I remember when it was going to be the next "big thing" that billboards in airports had demo apps for Palm and later PPC handhelds. Haven't seen those in awhile, though...

[acidreflux @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

To #6:

If you want to know the origin of Joy Division's (word to your mother) name, you might check out "24 Hour Party People".

[lossless @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

#6 - Gee, you're only, what, like 20, 30 years too late with the "Joy Division were Nazis" accusations. Watch 24 Hour Party People, look around on neworderonline.com, etc. The notion that JD or New Order had Nazi sympathies have been debunked a long time ago.

[palmer eldritch @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

I saw a poster at Westminster underground station a few weeks ago, advertising some album or other (Moby, possibly) with a fat Ir nipple so you could 'enter a competition to win CDs' - or should I say 'give us your mobile details so we can send you more spam' ?

Creative, smart and completely zarking annoying.

[Maniac @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

i still have to see one of those, i am totally lost about this king of ad