How Important Is Mobile/sms?
By Amitabh, Sat Dec 10th
There is a nice television commercial that is being showncurrently on the Indian TV channels. The Nokia advertisementseeks to dispel the commonly held notion that phones are usedjust for talking. A number of applications are shown, includingvideo recording, still photos, MP3 music, FM radio and of coursetext messages. Though text messaging is a big improvement on thepager (remember it?), today it feels impossible to live withoutit.
For the younger generation, life is unimaginable without amobile phone. For them it is like an extension of their hands, ahandy tool to say so many things. The young people have deviseda peculiar lingo of missed calls and text messages by the dozen.Text messages are an improved version of the old pass-the-notemessaging, especially in the classroom as SMS messages scurry toand fro. Text messages are ideal to send to people because theyare stored in their handsets to be read when they are free.Sometimes a call might catch the receiver at an awkward momentand he may prefer to ignore it at the time. Text messaging ispossible on every mobile phone and some landline phones also.
Text messaging has proved to be a profitable revenue earner forthe telecom companies thanks to the TV channels. Almost everyprogram advertises a short code (three, four or
five figurenumber) for viewers to send text messages with their opinions.Marketing companies have used text so extensively that thecourts stepped in to restrict the usage.
Sending text messages is also very convenient because thismedium is very suitable for sending payment reminders, paymentintimations, disaster alerts, SOS calls, greetings and courtesycalls can be transmitted in this form. Receipts of payments likeutility bills, club fees, subscriptions, renewals and so on canbe sent by way of SMS messages.
Text messages have proved their worth during the last few yearsas the ownership of mobile phones exploded to 60 million sets.During times of crisis, governments have rushed SMS alerts tocitizens warning of floods, earthquakes, etc. Thanks to its easeof use, more people are taking up text messaging. The mobilephone is now seen more as an accessory of modern life than as anovelty item. There are now more than 120 million phones inIndia, of which landlines constitute less than half the number.
Visit SMS India for moredetails on SMS and Text messaging.
About the author:SMSCountry is a leading two-way SMS text messaging applicationdeveloper providing mobile office tools that link the desktop tothe mobile phone.
