SMS

Also known as Short Message Service, Short Messaging Service

thumb|An SMS message received on a Siemens SL55 Short Message Service (SMS) is a text messaging service component of most telephone, Internet and mobile device systems. It uses standardized communication protocols that let mobile phones exchange short text messages, typically transmitted over cellular networks.

AI overview

Short Message Service (SMS) is a text messaging system that allows mobile phones to send and receive short written messages to each other over cellular networks. SMS matters because it's a widely available feature on most phones and internet devices, making it a fundamental way people communicate quickly and reliably.

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Wikidata facts

Image: Mehrere SMS mit Boarding-Informationen von Lufthansa (Android) screenshot — 2024-01-29 Mattes.jpg

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media type: application/vnd.3gpp2.sms
Stack Exchange tag: stackoverflow.com/tags/sms
Commons category: SMS
file extension: sms

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~28 min read

Article

28 sections

Contents

Developmental history
Initial concept
Early development
Early implementations
Growth and adoption
Contemporary usage
Other uses
Flash SMS
Silent SMS
SMS bombs
Technical details
GSM
Message size
Interconnectivity with other networks
Support in other architectures
AT commands
Premium-rated short messages
Threaded SMS
Application-to-person (A2P) SMS
Satellite phone networks
Unreliability
Vulnerabilities
SMS spoofing
Limitation
See also
Notes
References
External links

Developed as part of the GSM standards, and based on the SS7 signalling protocol, SMS rolled out on digital cellular networks starting in 1993 and was originally intended for customers to receive alerts from their carrier/operator. The service allows users to send and receive text messages of up to 160 characters, originally to and from GSM phones and later also CDMA and Digital AMPS; it has since been defined and supported on newer networks, including present-day 5G ones. Using SMS gateways, messages can be transmitted over the Internet through an SMSC, allowing communication to computers, fixed landlines, and satellite. MMS was later introduced as an upgrade to SMS with "picture messaging" capabilities.