SMS: Short Message Service
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SMS: Short Message Service
Short Message Service (SMS), often referred to as text messaging, is a form of mobile communication wherein short messages are sent to and from mobile devices. SMS was originally developed for use with GSM networks and devices, but usage has spread across multiple kinds of access technologies, meaning SMS messages can be exchanged even when the sender and recipient are on networks that use differing technologies (e.g., a GSM user on one network communicating with a CDMA user on another).
Today, SMS is one of the most popular applications for mobile devices worldwide and is contributing greatly to operators' continuously growing wireless data revenue.
SMS as well as Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS), which supports multimedia messages including text, video and audio, are widely supported by wireless operators and equipment vendors and both are based on open standards to facilitate interoperability across different phone models and wireless networks. SMS is a continued success as the cheapest, quickest, worldwide form of mobile communication.
There are five common platforms that comprise mobile messaging: SMS, MMS, voicemail, Instant Messaging (IM) and e-mail/unified messaging.
Text messaging has become the cash cow for mobile operators. In the U.S., text messaging activity increased significantly in the second half of 2008, according to CTIA, with 110.4 billion messages reported in the month of December (2008) – about 3.7 billion messages per day – representing a 47-percent increase over the 75 billion messages reported in June of 2008. Text messaging is doubling every year. U.S. operators reported one trillion text messages crossed their networks in 2008.
According to AT&T, nearly 80 billion wireless text messages crossed the AT&T network in the fourth quarter of 2008, more than double the total for the year-earlier fourth quarter. Robust growth in messaging revenue at T-Mobile USA continues to be the most significant driver of data ARPU as customers continue to shift toward purchasing plans that include messaging.
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