Received at the time by Richard Jarvis, collaborator of Vodafone, during the Christmas holidays, the SMS is composed of 15 characters to say "Merry Christmas" (Joyeux Noël in French).
The future buyer, who will be able to make their payment in cryptocurrency, will become the exclusive owner of a digital and unique replica of the original communication protocol that transmitted the world's first SMS.
The operator Vodafone has indicated that it will donate the proceeds from the sale to UNHCR, the United Nations refugee agency.
Almost unknown a year ago, NFTs are presented as a certificate of authenticity for an object, virtual or real, based on "blockchain" technology, a tamper-proof system that also authenticates cryptocurrency exchange transactions.
An NFT is unique and cannot be exchanged for an equivalent, hence its name: "Non-Fungible Token", which means "non-fungible token" in French.
The first SMS in history, transmitted by the operator Vodafone on December 3, 1992, presented on December 20, 2021 in Neuilly-sur-Seine, the day before its auction in the form of NFT ALAIN JOCARD AFP
For some, they represent the new goose that lays golden eggs on the contemporary art market and in a few months have become essential auction houses, reaching prices of several million dollars - the record for a work entirely. digital image of the American artist Beeple with 69.3 million in March at Christie's.
© 2021 AFP