NEW DELHI (AFP) - A cellphone ringtone that chants "condom, condom!" has been launched in India to promote safe sex and tackle the growing HIV/AIDS epidemic.

The "condom a cappella" has been designed to break down Indians' reluctance to discuss condom use and to make wearing a condom more acceptable.

Organisers of the campaign, funded by the foundation set up by Microsoft mogul Bill Gates and his wife Melinda, hope the ringtone will become a craze among young Indians.

About 2.5 million people live with HIV in India, said the BBC World Service Trust, the charity behind the ringtone, which was released this month. It can be downloaded at condomcondom.org.

"Ringtones have become such personal statements that a specially created condom ringtone seemed just the right way of combining a practical message with a fun approach," said Radharani Mitra, creative director of the BBC World Service Trust.

"The idea is to tackle the inhibitions and taboos that can be associated with condoms."

India is the world's fastest-growing mobile telephone market with 270 million users according to the latest official figures, up 57 percent in just one year.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/2008 ... sexindiaaidsoffbeat;_ylt=AvON0eRZ4oYuokfCfqU7LNTVJRIF

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By SAM DOLNICK, Associated Press Writer
Tue Aug 19, 8:47 AM ET
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NEW DELHI - A cell phone ring tone that sings "Condom, condom!" has been launched to promote safe sex in India, where condoms carry a strong social stigma and HIV and AIDS are growing problems, health experts said Tuesday.

The a cappella ring tone features a professional singer chanting the word condom more than 50 times, a playful approach that public health activists hope will spark discussion and make condoms more socially acceptable.

"We've made a conscious effort to move the concept of the condom away from negative association, like HIV and sex work," said Yvonne MacPherson, country director of BBC World Service Trust India. "Condoms are actually health products and if you have a condom and you use it, you are seen to be smart and responsible."

Nearly 2.5 million people in India are infected with HIV and the disease is still largely taboo.

The BBC group, which is funded by The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, hopes the condom ring tone can make people in India more comfortable with safe sex issues.

More than 270 million people use mobile phones in India and ring tones, especially those featuring hit Bollywood songs, are extremely popular.

"A ring tone is a very public thing," she said. "It's a way to show you are a condom user and you don't have any issues with it."

The ring tone was launched Aug. 8 and has been downloaded 60,000 times, MacPherson said.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080 ... ia_condom_ring_tone;_ylt=AqsYvS2qYU6aUhGwbiQbQ8zVJRIF

hmmmmmmmmmmmm

b4 reading this article, I tot that China is the fastest growing mobile tephone market...

Quote:

Original posted by sumiejapan at 2008-8-20 03:18 PM
hmmmmmmmmmmmm

By C. Vidya Shankar, MD
Thu Sep 11, 12:40 PM ET

CHENNAI, India (Reuters Health) - A ring-tone that sings "condom, condom, condom" has attracted over 270,000 downloads since its launch last month and has spread the message of safe sex to many more mobile phone users in India and abroad.

The innovative "Condom a Capella" ring-tone that has the word "condom" sung in many overlapping melodies is the work of an Indian duo, Rupert Fernandes and Vijay Prakash. The website http://www.condomcondom.org, where the ring-tone can be heard, has had over 2 million hits.

The campaign has been produced by the BBC World Service trust in India and aims to target the increasing number of India's mobile phone users, presently estimated at over 250 million.

According to latest figures, 2.4 million people are living with HIV in India. Only about half of the at-risk population, including sex workers and men who have sex with men have access to HIV prevention measures, the latest UNAIDS fact sheet on India states.

Stigma and taboo associated with sex education are the major challenges facings HIV/AIDS prevention programs in India. Less a third of the young population surveyed could correctly identify the ways to prevent HIV infection, the UNAIDS report states.

Never before has a mobile ring-tone been used to communicate a social or public health message, said Yvonne MacPherson, Country Director, India, BBC World Service Trust.

"We wanted to create a conversation piece that would get people talking and ultimately break down the taboo about condoms," she commented to Reuters Health. "We want condoms to be seen as any other health product."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080911/hl_nm/condom_india_dc;_ylt=AjgzDmMGkqQFkIffdARPkCrVJRIF