The buyer, whose detailed identity is not known, is Canadian and works in the new technology sector.
He is now the exclusive owner of a unique digital replica of the original communication protocol that transmitted this SMS.
The operator Vodafone had previously indicated that it would donate the proceeds of the sale to the UNHCR, the United Nations refugee agency, or 107,000 euros less the fees of the sales company.
The "Non-Fungible Token" (NFT), or in French a "non-fungible token", is a new type of digital asset, like cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, which uses blockchain technology ( blockchain), an authentication directory shared between a multitude of individuals.
An NFT is unique and cannot be exchanged for an equivalent.
Among the attendees in the room, Luigi Caradonna, an 18-year-old Swiss entrepreneur who founded a blockchain-based video game company, gave up when the bids exceeded 75,000 euros.
"I said to myself that it would be interesting to have this piece of history, to keep it as active until next year and to sell it next Christmas," he told AFP.
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
Almost unknown a year ago, the NFTs represent for some the new goose that lays the golden eggs of the contemporary art market and in a few months have become essential auction houses, reaching prices of several million. dollars - the record for an entirely digital work by the American artist Beeple with 69.3 million in March at Christie's.
© 2021 AFP