Burger King is well known for its $1 Value Menu, which has saved many a hungry college student's day. And now that famous Value Menu is taking a new turn -- by way of a partnership with Virgin Mobile -- and offering $1 ringtones. Although the selection, which is available at www.virginmobileusa.com, is quite limited [just like the restaurant's dollar menu, when you think about it!] it does offer fans a chance to get songs by some hot new artists at an affordable price.

Some of the more popular artists included on the special Burger King-branded menu include:

Danity Kane

Goo Goo Dolls

Lupe Fiasco

Big & Rich

Metallica

Jason Mraz

The company decided to target diverse audiences, by hitting many different genres with their offerings. The ringtone offer is for a limited time only, and more than anything, is an interesting look at cross-company promotion. Burger King has one of the best ad agencies around, as they are one of the few who have had success with viral campaigns and quirky, innovative commercials. While ringtones and fast food don't naturally go together, Burger King has largely been bulletproof in its advertising offerings for the past few years. It makes perfect sense for Virgin Mobile to choose to attach themselves to such an established brand and to be one of the first to somewhat feed off of Burger King's online and real-world advertising success.

That said, a word of warning: the company will be promoting Burger King via WAP ads and SMS advertising. Of course, this comes hand in hand with the $1 ringtone, and could ultimately be the downfall of the campaign. People really dislike SMS advertising, for one, and it seems a bit strange to charge someone $1 for the ringtone and then add them to a mass advertising list. Time will tell if this strategy works for the companies....