"The real question is, if this technology is really outdated then what is keeping it alive as an important player in the competitive mobile market?"

Invented just 22 years ago, Short Message Service (SMS) has only been at its peak a relatively short amount of time. The last couple of years have seen SMS enjoying a lot of attention from the mobile industry as a whole. Increased use of Over-The-Top (OTT) services such as Whatsapp, Wechat and Messenger has resulted in a decline of mobile operator revenues. Is it time for SMS to become a thing of the past? The real question is, if this technology is really outdated then what is keeping it alive as an important player in the competitive mobile market?.

One of the most important things to consider is the growth of enterprise uses of SMS for security purposes, such as two-factor authentication. If we actually think about it, SMS is the first mobile app to exceed the limits and utility of voice call. This might be another reason why, even with the changing customer behaviours and trends, SMS is able to retain its image in the market with its simplicity and immediacy. The phonebook in the mobile was the first “social network” that we ever had. Even today, if you buy a new handset you still don’t need a VIBER, IMessage or Line to send a message because you already have SMS which will remain the default messaging app for some time to come.

The general fact is that in spite of the growing demand of SMS alternatives, the alternatives themselves depend on SMS to get activated. A very usual and important function for any new messaging app is to enroll a new user/customer. In order to start using the alternative messaging app on the mobile, the app company first sends a security code to the user via SMS to get it activated. So it is as simple as that, even today without SMS you cannot use the messaging alternatives. This is the same technique (two factor authentication) used by many large websites and companies to provide additional security to their users and their accounts. Aside from this, SMS today is widely used as a money -making business strategy.

This is, undoubtedly, the greatest period yet for mobile innovation and the generation of consumers who are growing up in the mobile-first, always-connected environment. Like most 21 year old's, SMS probably can’t imagine what life will be like aged 30, but when one considers the changes it has not only weathered but actually fostered, it is hard to foresee a time when something sharing most of its attributes – a ubiquitous real-time messaging system coupled to every user’s mobile identity – won’t have an important place in the market, and indeed in our pockets.