What is a SMS?

Answer

SMS or Short Messaging Service is the name given to a service that delivers text messages to a mobile or cell phone. The text messages are normally restricted to 160 characters (although some providers allow 70 and 500
characters). If a phone is out of coverage, in use or turned off, the service holds the message until the phone becomes available.

In Europe SMS was a great success in the consumer market. Over time companies and corporations have started to benefit by using SMS as another way to contact their employees for important information. In Europe, SMS has completely replaced the older, pager system because it is easier, more
flexible and more convenient.

Short messages can originate from other phones or the Internet, but they are all delivered via a short messaging center (SMSC). The SMS centers receive messages from a range of places, including phones within their networks, the Internet, and other mobile operators SMS centers, then
deliver the messages to their customers.

Using GMS Mobile Gateway you can select which SMSC to use to handle SMS messages. These messages can then be delivered directly to that SMSC either from within the GMS Webmail interface or via messages handled within SMTP itself.

Once SMS has been set up, users can send an email message directly to an SMS phone or use filters to deliver specific messages to their own phone. For example, while an engineer is on call, he may tell those in the office to include the word “SMS” in the subject of a message so that it gets
delivered to his phone where-ever he happens to be.

The power of SMS only becomes obvious when linked with a product such as
GMS. For example:

  • Users can send an email message directly to an SMS phone and use
    filters to deliver specific messages to their own phone. For example, while
    an engineer is on call, he may tell those in the office to include the word
    “SMS” in the subject of a message so that it gets
    delivered to his phone where-ever he happens to be.

  • Calendar events may send automatic notifications to SMS phones to
    remind the owner that they are due to attend a meeting. This will reduce
    the number of late attendees and therefore make running the meeting more
    efficient.

  • IM users can set the off-line status to tell people to contact them via
    SMS. Any IM user wishing to get a message to them simply needs to click on
    the cellphone icon and type the message.

Keywords:SMS Short Messaging Service

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