Is SMS Dead?
July 10, 2010 by Larissa THIA
With the rapid acceleration of the mobile internet, one might naturally wonder whether or not this would spell the eventual death of SMS. Of course, the key word here being eventual since SMS still has its own place and use especially in the developing world.
In particular, we call to mind the success of Kenya’s money transfer service M – PESA which allows users to transfer money from one part of Kenya to another within seconds via one’s mobile phone. It is used by 9.5m people, or 23% of the population, and transfers the equivalent of 11% of Kenya’s GDP each year. M – PESA has also inspired 60 similar schemes across the world such as Nokia’s tie up with YES Bank to introduce its M – Pesa inspired Nokia Money in India.
Tellingly, larger companies who have invested in mobile internet are not giving up on SMS based services yet as they realize that there is still a lot of money on the table. For instance, Google expanded their Google Mobile services to Africa which has the world’s highest mobile growth rate. Mobile penetration in Africa is even higher than that of internet penetration, and this phenomenon is not just limited to Africa.
Quantitative Evidence That SMS Is Not Dead
Quantitatively, global smartphone adoption is still in its early phase of development with Italy leading the pack at 28% adoption rate. It seems that in developed countries, this trend is being powered by the younger generation whilst baby boomers are still clinging on to their low feature phones. Moreover, only 55% of baby boomers in the US market say that a phone is a “necessity” and many are still reluctant to adopt new technology.
On another note, a 2009 ITU annual report on the development in the information and communication technologies (ICT) sector notes that global mobile phone penetration rate was 67% last year with developing countries reaching 57% penetration. While 57% shows encouraging signs for improved telecommunications – this number is more than double its 2005 level of 23%, comparatively, there is still more room to grow as mobile phone rates average more than 100% in developed nations.
As such, although smartphone penetration rate is increasing with rapidity, there is a need to acknowledge the significant time lag between early to widespread adoption taking place. In the meantime though, SMS will retain its relevancy.
Having said that, SMS is still a common denominator despite the increased capabilities of smartphones. Case in point: smartphones retain SMS functions despite their instant messaging tools. Moreover, users are also exploring usages for SMS beyond chatting and broadcasting. SMS applications have been built as cost effective tools for building basic relationships with one’s target group.
Such platforms do not necessitate users to be online and therefore will not be dependent on internet infrastructure – especially useful if one intends to reach out to the developing countries.
For instance, FrontlineSMS , which targets NGO’s looking towards the text messages to reach specific groups of individuals within a target community, enables one to create, manage and engage with their SMS – related contact groups. This includes the running of surveys and competitions etc via their SurveyManager function.
I think there is a necessity here to differentiate the different perspectives to the question “Is SMS dead?”. From a marketer’s perspective, even though smartphones and mobile web may offer them so much more potential for user engagement, the reality may be that people are still highly dependent on SMS as a basic communicative function and this is something that is unlikely to change that soon. So while the first ripple of early adopters go gaga over the latest iPhone 4, it is important not to forget the larger population who still cling to existing technology.
Final Say
In conclusion, although a fraction of the world is breaking off and moving towards mobile internet, a large proportion of the world still does not have access to mobile phones. Even so, smartphones have retained their SMS functions despite improved communicative capabilities. SMS therefore remains a common denominator and it still has relevance for basic forms of communication.
Moreover, the penetration rate of smartphones has not reached sufficient proportions to indicate its dominance yet. Therefore, development of smartphones and mobile internet should not be done at the expense of SMS based services which are still applicable to rather large markets in the developing world.
Final Say: Mobile web is the way of the future, SMS is NOT dead, but it is dying.
Image Credit: black_z , nielsenwire
About The Author
Larissa THIA - SGE Alumnus - Editorial Intern
Larissa is a fresh graduate who has a love for the irreverent and outré. She is highly fascinated by culture, thought processes and human nature in general.
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