It’s hard to imagine a world without text messages. From quick check-ins with friends to important business updates, SMS has become an integral part of our daily lives. But have ever wondered how it all started? Who sent the first message, and what was it about?
Who Created the Short Message Service?
The creation of SMS can be attributed to a group of engineers working for the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) in the late 1980s. The team was tasked with developing a system that could transmit short, text-based messages over cellular networks.
One key player in this effort was Friedhelm Hillebrand, who is often credited as the “father of SMS”. In an interview with BBC News, Hillebrand stated that he came up with the idea for limiting texts to 160 characters based on his observations of postcards and telex messages.
However, despite being part of the ETSI group responsible for creating SMS standards, Hillebrand has also acknowledged that many others contributed to its development. He specifically noted the work of Bernard Ghillebaert and Jean-Francois Gauthier in defining technical parameters like message length and transmission speed.
Ultimately, it was this collaboration between numerous individuals and organizations that led to the birth of Short Message Service – a technology that would go on to revolutionize communication around the world.
When Was the First Text Message Sent?
The first text message ever sent was on December 3, 1992. It was sent by a software engineer named Neil Papworth in the UK. The recipient of this historic message was Richard Jarvis from Vodafone who received it on his Orbitel 901 mobile phone.
Interestingly, the first SMS wasn’t actually typed out on a mobile device but rather sent over an early computer network called Vodafone’s Network Control Program (NCP). The message simply read “Merry Christmas” and marked the beginning of a new era in communication technology.
At that time, no one could have predicted how monumental this simple text would be for not just personal communication but also for businesses looking to connect with their customers. In fact, SMS marketing has become one of the most effective ways to reach customers directly and immediately.
Despite being over 30 years old now, SMS is still widely used and effective today. With advancements like multimedia messaging (MMS) and Rich Communication Services (RCS), there are even more opportunities for businesses to engage with their audience via text messages.
It’s clear that that first test message back in ’92 marked just the beginning of what has now become an essential part of our daily lives – whether we’re sending Merry Christmas wishes or marketing campaigns!
About Plexins
Plexins, the free SMS and email marketing platform built for Shopify brands. All features are free, including the lowest SMS and email price, global SMS sending, and service in 210+ countries. Plexins is committed to helping Shopify brands grow their businesses by providing the most affordable and easy-to-use marketing tools available. With Plexins, businesses can send unlimited texts and emails to customers worldwide at low cost.
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