New Delhi: ‘Merry Christmas’ was the first text-message sent to the world 30 years ago in 1992. It was sent on 3 December 1992 to the mobile phone of Richard Jarvis, a Vodafone engineer named Neil Papworth in Berkshire, UK.
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Short-messaging service (SMS) is a text-based communication method that facilitates communication between people via technology such as cellphones or computers. The concept of SMS was first created in 1984 by Friedelm Hillerbrand and Bernard Ghilbert in the Franco-German GSM collaboration. It is called short because it supports a maximum character set of 160, including letters, numbers or symbols in the Latin alphabet, regardless of the type of technology used.
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Mr Jarvis had the Orbitel 901, the latest phone on the market, on which he received the message ‘Merry Christmas’. However, he did not reply to the message.
How SMS technology works?
SMS technology converts the text into electrical signals and sends it to the nearest tower. Then it goes to SMS center. It will then transmit to the cell tower closest to the receiver. Finally, the tower sends the message to the recipient’s device.
What is Orbitel 901?
Orbitel 901 is the state-of-the-art device of that time which supports the advanced GSM technology and is a major breakthrough in the history of GSM networks. It was launched in 1992 by Orbitel, a UK-based phone manufacturer based in Basingtoke, Hampshire.