Idea Cellular has launched a mobile VAS service called "Magic Voice", which allows users to change their voice while making a mobile call. The available voice options: "Bugs Bunny, Monster, Tweety bird, Don, Donald Duck, Male, Baby, Female & Kid". Launched by VAS company Techzone, the service has only been launched for the Tamil Nadu & Chennai circle, and is priced at Re 1 per minute, and can be accessed by dialing the short code 56060. These are essentially voice filters and the product reminds me of Talking Tom, a unexpectedly successful mobile application from mobile apps company Outfit7, where a talking cat repeats whatever you say in, well, a cat's voice. We haven't been able to try out Idea Magic Voice, but the tricky part of the service will be whether there is a lag between what is being said and what is heard: the lag is even a couple of seconds, the conversation will not be smooth. In any case, this is a prank callers dream come true, except for the fact that mobile has caller ID. Perhaps there are people who'll buy an Idea SIM just to make prank calls using the service. I'm surprised that this has been launched only in one circle - it is one that could have nationwide appeal. Alternatives An alternative deployment could be that if you're on a call, you can press a set of keys - say #1 to turn on a particular filter. While this service is paid, I'm…
