Blog post #4: The First SMS Text

It's interesting to think about how often we text people and don't even think about it. Whether you're making plans with friends, texting your parents or just saying "I'm here", texting is one of the easiest days to communicate these days. However, there was obviously a time when sending a message over the phone was normal. The first SMS text message was not sent until 1992, and the message was two words: "Merry Christmas." This message began a whole new way of communicating. 

Friedhelm Hillebrand and Bernard Ghillebaert

SMS, which stands for Short Message Service, began several years before the first text was even sent. During the 1980's, engineers began developing a way for short messages to travel through mobile networks. Friedhelm Hillebrand and Bernard Ghillebaert had major roles in developing the concept of SMS in this period. 

One challenge they faced was figuring out how long these messages could be. SMS was designed originally to transfer small amounts of information without taking up a lot of network capacity. The service used to only allow users to send and receive messages of up to 160 characters. That sounds so limiting on todays world where we are used to sending long paragraphs, photos, videos, GIFs and emojis. 

The technology reached a major milestone on December 3, 1992. Neil Papworth, at the age of 22, was the first person to send a text message ever. He was working as a development and test engineer at Sema Group Telecoms, in a team developing a Short Message Service Centre. The text was sent from a computer to the phone of Vodafone director Richard Jarvis. They were attending a Christmas party when his phone received the message "Merry Christmas." 

Sema Group Logo

The growth of SMS was huge. Texting completely changed communication because people no longer needed to talk on the phone every time they wanted to tell someone something. At the time since you were only allowed to send 160 characters, shortened phrases and abbreviations became popular. Things like "LOL," "IDK," and "BTW" allowed people to share their thoughts and ideas while using few characters. 

Texting also helped set the stage for the messaging apps we use today. WhatsApp, iMessage, Snapchat, and other platforms are more advances than SMS, but they all build off of the idea of being able to instantly send messages through a mobile device. However, texting has not had only positive effects. Written messages can be misunderstood easily because we can't hear someone's tone or see their expressions. Texting is also distracting, especially when we feel like we have to constantly check our phones or respond instantly. Unwanted texts, spam calls and scams are also problems that SMS has faces as its become more widespread. 

For me, it is almost impossible to imagine my daily life without texting someone. Whether its my mom, one of my roommates or a grandparent, texting keeps us all connected easily. It allows me to make plans quickly, check in on people throughout the day, or even just to say a simple "hi" to someone. I think that is what makes the history of SMS so fascinating because something that started with a simple "Merry Christmas" message started something I use every single day without even thinking about it. It is interesting to think about how something so small ended up changing the way the world communicates.