Mobile giant pushes IM service
Recently, Apple introduced the iMessage free text chat service at the World Developers Conference (WWDC), which allows Apple product users to have the ability to open SMS operators and freely exchange text messages. According to the analysis agency IDC, by the end of 2015, the global iPhone sales of Apple will reach 166 million units, which means that over 150 million Apple users worldwide will be able to completely remove operator SMS services and use iMessage to communicate with each other through the data network.
Stimulated by Apple, Nokia also recently announced the launch of its own "IM for Nokia." Similar to Apple iMessage, Nokia IM allows Nokia users and Nokia users to communicate with Ovi e-mail, Google Talk, MSN, Yahoo! Messenger, and MySpace IM users for free, only paying for data traffic.
Earlier, Microsoft invested 8.5 billion U.S. dollars in acquisition of the well-known VoIP software Skype; Google plans to further improve the existing Google Voice for text communication; RIM has already launched the BlackBerry's own IM tool BBM. In May this year, the sign-in service Foursquare was integrated into BBM.
For a while, various low-cost and easy-to-use mobile phone manufacturers have their own IM tools to present a flourishing world. The nature of being squeezed out of market share is naturally the most expensive and most traditional form of communication—mobile text messaging.
The number of text messages can be reduced by 20% within two years
In fact, the mobile phone maker IM tool seems to be still only "in the future." However, the inclusion of third-party IM software such as mobile phone QQ, microblogging private messaging, and rice chat software has long been a "must take place now."
"As long as my cell phone is on, I will hang on mobile phones like QQ, Weibo, and rice chat. It is very convenient to communicate with colleagues and friends." An iPhone 4 user told reporters that he had basically used no mobile phone messages. . Experts estimate that the number of text messages will drop by 20% in the next two years. Yi Yi, chairman of the market consulting firm, Zhang Yi, told reporters that with the post-90s, users have long been accustomed to sending IM messages for free. When they enter middle age, mobile SMS will also become history. According to a related survey conducted by Sina.com, 55.4% of users believe that this situation is "very likely".
In fact, despite the rapid increase in mobile phone users in China, the use of mobile phone text messages has increased by about 5%. However, in the United States where the number of mobile phone users is basically stable, the use of mobile phone text messages has begun to gradually decrease. According to a recent report released by CTIA, the Wireless Communications and Internet Association of the United States, in the second half of 2010, the number of mobile phone users receiving and sending text messages reached as much as one trillion, but it was only 8.7% higher than in the first half of the year. This was the smallest increase in text messages during the decade.
Operators need to change the charging method
According to industry insiders, apart from the customer experience, an important reason why smart phone users prefer to use mobile IM tools instead of SMS is that they are cheap. The current basic price of a text message is about a cent, while using IM tools and work. For households to communicate, no matter how they talk, they only need to use a small amount of data traffic, which is much less than the price of text messages. There are overseas analysts who have calculated an account. AT&T's use of traffic to send newsletters can save at least $10 a month. Therefore, the first step for operators to compete with mobile IM tools is to significantly reduce SMS service fees.
However, some experts have told reporters that although the outlook for mobile text messaging is not optimistic, it will not be too pessimistic. Ye Dan, a portal mobile phone test director, told reporters that, first of all, operators face competition, and it is possible to greatly reduce the use of mobile phone text messages to promote the use of SMS. Second, there is still a huge number of users in China who are using simple-featured mobile phones instead of smartphones. Therefore, the SMS function is indispensable. Finally, mobile text messages are likely to develop into "messengers" for communication between major IM tools - for example, between disparate Apple, Google, Microsoft, and Nokia, requiring SMS as a communication platform.
IM tool or replace mobile phone SMS within two years
SMS is the most dangerous time! In addition to IM (instant messaging) tools, microblogging, and chat, third-party software, constantly challenging the survival of mobile SMS, even well-known mobile phone manufacturers such as Apple, Google, Microsoft, and Nokia have recently launched their own IM software. Provide free text chat service, users only need to pay for data flow communication, this move to the operator's short message service has largely replaced the posture. Some analysts believe that with the younger generation growing up using IM software, it is only a matter of time before mobile SMS is gradually replaced and merged into data services.