The history of SMS (Short Message Service) development can be traced back to the 1980s. Here is a brief overview of its major stages:
Origin and Conceptualization (1980s - 1990s): The concept of SMS emerged in the 1980s, but it wasn't until the early 1990s that SMS began to gain popularity worldwide. Initially, SMS could only be sent between users within the same mobile network and was not very user-friendly.
Interoperability Across Networks (1990s - 2000s): As mobile communication technology advanced, different mobile networks achieved interoperability for SMS, allowing users to send messages across networks. This stage also witnessed the development of SMS encoding to represent more characters with fewer bits, thereby enhancing the efficiency of message transmission.
Widespread Adoption and Societal Impact (2000s): During the 2000s, SMS became an incredibly popular communication method, seamlessly integrating into people's daily lives. People quickly adopted this quick and concise way of communication, leading to profound impacts on social interactions, business, and personal communication.
Era of Smartphones (2010s): With the proliferation of smartphones, SMS faced competition from communication apps with more advanced features, such as WhatsApp, WeChat, Telegram, and others. These apps enabled not only text messages but also the exchange of images, videos, voice messages, and more, significantly enriching the scope of communication.
Rise of OTT Communication Apps (2010s - Present): With the rapid growth of the internet, many Over-The-Top (OTT) communication apps emerged, offering diverse and convenient communication methods. These apps operate independently of traditional carrier networks and utilize the internet for communication, enabling users to communicate globally at little to no cost.
In conclusion, SMS has evolved from a simple means of communication to being challenged by more feature-rich applications. While still widely used in certain regions, SMS has been largely supplanted by more diverse and convenient communication methods in many contexts.