Recent figures released in the UK show that on average, 56,000,000 SMS messages are sent every day in the UK, representing a huge income source for carriers and premium SMS providers. The market in the UK (and the rest of Europe) is a mature one, especially with the prevalence of cross-network SMS being relatively cheap, and with almost universal cross-network premium SMS services.

The most common uses for SMS are, obviously, for communicating with friends, with the most common premium SMS services being ringtones (where SMS is used for billing), horoscopes or football alerts, simple, automated text services. And so some people may think the SMS industry has reached it’s peak, and everything’s now been done. (more…)

(Originally posted on
The Feature on November 18, 2003, although it has been slightly edited and updated for clarity)

Part one in an occasional series – experiences trying to cross over Computer, Console and Online Games into the mobile space.

My first foray into journals on this website is, I’m afraid, going to consist of a complaint directed against the mobile industry as a whole. I’m going to talk about what I perceive as missed opportunities in the mobile space, things I’ve personally experienced.

The first is going to be the ‘killer app’ for mobile gaming.

(more…)