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T H I R T Y
o n e
I
t might sound short and sweet, but SMS (Short
Message Service) is becoming an extremely hot item on the agenda of mobile phone users,
in fact giving WAP a run for its chips.
The world over, particularly the Asia Pacific region, where “going mobile” is the
done thing, SMS is becoming the means of communication between users. From
sending Valentine’s Day graphics and messages, to information on stocks and news
on the score of an on-going football match
—
the uses of SMS are mind-boggling,
innovative and imaginative. Statistics indicate that in the year 2000, the tally of
SMS messages was around 7.6 billion every month.
Besides serving as a cheap option and alternative to making cell phone calls
(
the cost of sending an SMS message is less than half ), SMS can do much, much more.
This technology in fact is everything it is primed up to be. Tomorrow you could be
sitting in ‘The Club’ in Juhu, Bombay, and waiting to order a drink from a vending
machine in the vicinity. You’ll just have to type out the message and hey presto,
your drink will be out of the door. People can already access community boards and
pay for goods using SMS.
Take the instance of the famous auction site eBay. Users can now bid for items up
for auction on the site through their mobile phones using SMS as the messenger. With
SMS at their fingertips, customers don’t have to worry about not having access to a
WAP phone or Internet enabled desktop. Customers can track how individual
bids are shaping up and be informed about new items up for auction. Through SMS
alerts, information on auctions that are about to close can also be transmitted.
After receiving such a message, users can respond through mobiles, indulge in
some bidding and outbidding and even clinch a sale.
The Times of India,
Mumbai can in fact use the SMS to keep its readership posted
on the hottest news nuggets as and when they flow in. It won’t be long before you
will be able to book your tickets at a popular “Prithvi Theatre” performance using
The Times of India – Delhi Times February 23, 2001
SMS With a Smile
