According to the findings of a new report from global mobile messaging leader Acision, 91% of US Smartphone owners surveyed still actively use SMS, almost 2.5 times higher than the most popular social media app.
That’s also 8 times higher than the most popular Smartphone OTT app today.
Two thirds of US Smartphone owners (65%) state they need SMS, of which 45% would be lost without it.
Not surprisingly given that strong penchant for this communication method, 62% of US Smartphone users have unlimited SMS bundles.
The research also indicated that US consumers send an average of 107 SMS messages per week – top of all the messaging services.
“The ubiquity, simplicity and reach of SMS continues to make it the messaging service of choice among mobile users today – even for Smartphone users that have easy access to SMS alternatives,” said James Israel, senior vice president and general manager for North America at Acision.
“Acision’s in-depth look into messaging offers new insights on user habits as well as their continuing dependence on SMS in conjunction with using other messaging services next to text,” he adds. “What is interesting is that SMS seems to excel on devices that have been more commonly associated with IM services. Based on these results, we can see that price is a key consumer requirement that drives messaging behavior, but can be eliminated from the equation when comparing SMS and OTT messaging service usage in the US because of unlimited SMS bundles. We can also determine there is a long and healthy future for SMS, if operators get the pricing right and enhance the user experience.”
