The very first SMS message sent thirty years ago

An image of the first SMS in history, "Merry Christmas", during the auction of its NFT, in December 2021 in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France.

© AFP/Alain Jocard

Text by: RFI Follow

2 mins

On December 3, 1992, the operator Vodafone transmitted the first mobile message in history: "

s", or " 

 ".

Thirty years later, SMS may seem outdated by online messaging systems, but it still equips mobile phones around the world.

Advertising

Read more

“ 

 ” is the message sent by the British engineer Neil Papworth on December 3, 1992 via the telephone operator Vodafone.

The very first Short Message Service, or SMS, mobile-to-mobile messaging system, was born.

Limited to 160 characters, the SMS protocol initially imposed minimalist writing with questionable spelling, accompanied by an avalanche of punctuation marks in order to accentuate the content of the messages.

On December 3rd 1992, Vodafone sent the world's first ever SMS text message.

The message?

'Merry Christmas'

How many Merry Christmas texts have we all sent in the 30 years since?

🎅🏻 pic.twitter.com/QPhXUQmKNo

— Vodafone UK (@VodafoneUK) December 3, 2022 “On December 3, 1992, Vodafone sent the world's first text message.

The message ?

"Merry Christmas".

How many Merry Christmas text messages have we sent since?

»

This new way of communicating immediately won over billions of users around the world.

From a paid service at 15 euro cents per message, SMS were then integrated into unlimited telecom packages. 

► Also to listen: The first SMS in history sold for 107,000 euros, in the form of "NFT"

Overtaken by messaging apps

In the 2010s, online messaging services such as

, Messenger, or even Telegram, which make it possible to avoid the roaming charges applied to SMS sent abroad, ended up making its use outdated.

However, this decline must be put into perspective: 200,000 SMS are sent every second worldwide, or 6,100 billion short messages sent this year.

The old-fashioned Short Message Service is holding its own, and all phones made still have it, regardless of model.

The SMS has made itself indispensable, in particular as a tool for verifying identity and security.

They can thus provide access to their bank account, confirm receipt of a package, consult the result of a Covid test or even receive an alert directly on their mobile in the event of a natural, industrial or health disaster.

► The 2003 RFI archive: SMS, the little messages that go up

Newsletter

Receive all the international news directly in your mailbox

I subscribe

Follow all the international news by downloading the RFI application

• Technology

• Digital

• Culture

• Telecom