I want to mention these numbers in passing. We've been saying for many years - and against the "conventional wisdom" of essentially all USA-based experts - that USA SMS text messaging usage will follow European usage patterns in lock-step with a four year delay.

Why? Because its been proven that SMS text messaging is addictive and as a communication method it is far superior to any other communication method - being both the most private and the fastest form of communication. Faster and more private than eMail, voicemail, voice calls etc. Yes, faster (in most cases) than Blackberry wireless eMail even or IM Instant Messaging (as BB is not used by all, and users to IM are not permanently connected to IM systems)

So just an update in where are the stats today. Telephia reports on Q1 2007 USA SMS text messaging users, that already 63.7% of all American mobile phone subscribers are already active users of SMS text messaging. This is up from 41% the year before and 25% this time in 2005.

This level (passing 60% active users) was reached by the UK when? Four years ago. Will the American SMS texting usage level reach 85% of the total population (note not mobile phone owners, but against the whole population, that last 15% is mostly toddlers who don't know how to write and the very few digitally disenfranchised and some who are illiterate) as the European average today? Of course it will.

SMS text messaging traffic in America - CTIA reports 93% year-on-year growth in traffic for second half of 2006 compared to second half 2005. Wow. Again American Idol is a way many Americans pick up the habit.

Verizon is the first American carrier to report the average SMS text messages sent by its subscriber base has passed 1 SMS sent per phone subscriber per day. And when was the 1 text per subscriber level reached by the UK? Four years ago (of course. The pattern holds in lock-step)

And how big will texting become in America? We've just seen Irish numbers by the Irish telecoms regulator that they average 5 SMS sent per day across the whole subscriber base. UK reports 6. South Korea reports 10. Singapore reports 12 SMS text messages and the Philippines report 15 SMS text messages sent per day on average across the total subscriber base.

Heavy users in the UK average 20 SMS per day. Super-heavy users (10% of all) average 100 SMS text messages per day. It gets so bad, according to a survey by Virgin Mobile last year, that 5% of British mobile phone users report repetitive injury pains from heavy texting use.

And next? As users discover the power of texting, they start to prefer texting to making voice calls. Yes, this too will happen in America, just like we've already seen in the UK and Ireland for example just within the past 12 months.

Worldwide mobile phone messaging was an 80 Billion dollar industry last year, will hit 105 B dollars this year. 75% of that is person-to-person SMS text messaging (over half of the rest is premium SMS ie voting for American Idol etc; with MMS picture messaging, wireless eMail like Blackberry and mobile IM Instant Messaging as small remaining parts).

There is NO age limit to SMS. Most grandparents learn to send text messages by connecting with their grandkids - back in 2005 M:Metrics reported that 14% of Americans over age 65 sent text messages (I don't have more current numbers). Bearing in mind that back then 39% of Americans age 65 and above had a cellphone, that means two YEARS ago 36% of American senior citizens who owned a cellphone, were already active users of SMS text messaging.

Same is true for business. SMS is the fastest form of communication and the most private - even more important to busy attorneys, doctors, engineers, businessmen etc - than for teenagers. American business/corporate world is now going through its "SMS revellation" and discovering this powerful communication tool.

Remember as we reported, while eMail is expected to be replied to within 24 hours, most users of SMS text messaging expect a reply in 5 minutes. Its THAT fast.

But yes, every sign supports the same pattern as first observed in Finland (where the first person-to-person SMS text message was sent in December 1993), then in other Scandinavian/Nordic countries, then rest of leading Europe like UK, Italy, Ireland - and the leading Asian countries like Philippines, Singapore, South Korea etc. The same pattern holds for the USA (and Canada).

SMS worldwide is the most used data application. Logica CMG reports that we've reached 2 billion active users of SMS text messaging worldwide. Thats almost twice as many people as use the internet.

Are YOU an active user of SMS text messaging? Isn't it time you picked up this habit and joined the 21st century?

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Tomi T Ahonen is a bestselling author and independent consultant in the emerging areas of next generation wireless who lectures at Oxford University and is seen annually at about 20 telecoms/IT conferences on six continents. His expertise includes the business, applications, services, partnering and marketing of wireless technologies. Tomi provides advanced wireless service marketing plan workshops and business case audits for operators/carriers; new service creation workshops; and value chain analysis for content providers and assists global media, IT and telecoms companies on their transitions to a digitally converged world.

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