This month marks the 30th anniversary of the first SMS (Short Messaging Service) message when Vodafone engineer Neil Papworth sent the words “Merry Christmas” from a computer to a mobile device.

Originally only intended as a means of internal communication for mobile service providers, the advent of affordable mobile phones meant that within a matter of years text messaging became hugely popular with the general public, peaking 10 years ago when some 150 billon SMS messages were sent in the UK alone.

While still widely used, SMS messaging has slowly been decreasing over the years as more advanced communications services are rolled out. WhatsApp, iMessage, Facebook Messenger and many other services allow for end-to-end encrypted messaging including the ability to share images, video and of course, emojis.

SMS will still likely be around for a number of years yet, with some 5.4 billion people on the planet owning a mobile device that can send and receive these messages without the need for a third party service. However, the glory days of texting are probably over and SMS is seen as being increasingly obsolete.

PTT has a range of courses covering mobile communications including “Wireless communications“, “Introduction to mobile systems” and “Mobile radio communications“.
In 2023 we will be releasing new courses “4G and 5G radio access networks” and “Advanced mobile systems” which cover the technologies that drive the latest mobile networks.