Archived News - October 2005

SMS warning on ‘zulican virus’ a hoax

30/11/19

KUALA LUMPUR: Ignore an SMS saying that a “very dangerous zulican virus is spreading through seafood”.

Health Minister Datuk Dr Chua Soi Lek advised people not to spread or listen to such rumours following the tsunami disaster.

“The Health Ministry is always on the alert and will keep the public informed of any new developments, including infectious diseases.

“Everything is under control so far,” he said.

According to the Malaysian Medical Association (MMA), the so-called virus does not exist.

MMA president Datuk Dr N. Arumugam said he had also not received any report of sudden surges in food-poisoning cases, even in states badly affected by the tsunami, like Penang and Kedah.

The people would be safe as long as they did not eat the decaying fish washed ashore during the tsunami, he said.

When told that some variations of the SMS cited the MMA as the source of the alert, he said: “Perhaps some people have nothing better to do, so they decide to stir things up.”

In Petaling Jaya, Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister Datuk Shafie Apdal said his ministry would continue to monitor fish prices, supplies and sources to ensure price stability and food safety following the tsunami disaster.

He said the ministry was working closely with the Malaysian Fisheries Development Board to monitor the prices as well as to ensure that the fish were sourced from non-contaminated areas.

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RECORD NUMBER OF SMS CALLS IN FIRST HOUR OF NEW YEAR

30/11/19

Taipei - A total of 2.22 million text messages were sent via the Chunghwa Telecom mobile network in the first hour of 2005, the highest-ever hourly record, company officials said Saturday.

The figure compared with 1.7 million recorded in the first hour of 2004, according to Chunghwa Telecom chief engineer Shih Mu-piao.

A total of 8.54 million text messages were sent via the company's mobile network on New Year's eve Friday, up nearly 30 percent from the 6.31 million registered on the same day the previous year, Shih said.

The highest daily volume last year was recorded on the first day of Lunar New Year, which stood at 12 million, followed by Christmas Day, which stood at some 9 million

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2005 rings in a new record for Switzerland

30/11/19

New Year’s greetings in Switzerland by mobile phone have reached a new record, with 70.4 million text messages and pictures sent throughout the country.

Although the trend to send MMS greetings is on the increase, the number of SMS messages sent over the holiday period still made up the larger proportion.

Despite the high load placed on equipment, the mobile network functioned smoothly, according to Switzerland’s three mobile operators. There were only a few instances of small delays.

Christian Neuhaus, a spokesman for the branch leader Swisscom told the Swiss News Agency that on New Year’s Eve and on New Year’s Day, a total of 34.3 million SMS and MMS messages were processed.

The previous year was slightly lower at 32.6 million.

Swisscom subscribers sent over 18 million SMS and MMS greetings up to midnight on New Year’s Eve. On New Year’s Day, a further 16.3 million messages were registered.

Clients of Orange wished their friends and acquaintances a happy new year with 17.79 million messages, according to the company’s spokeswoman Therese Wenger.

The majority - 17.1 million – contained SMS wishes, while the remaining 690,000 were MMS messages.

Up to midnight on New Year’s Eve, 8.41 million messages, including 8.1 million SMSs, went across the Orange network. On New Year’s Day, a further 9.38 million messages were transmitted, including nine million SMSs.

Wenger commented that the number of MMS greetings sent - 690,000 - was more than four times that of 12 months ago (150,000). She explained that this was probably due to the fact that practically all new mobile phones could now send MMS messages.

Switzerland’s third-largest mobile provider, Sunrise, reported that on December 31 and January 1, a total of 18.3 messages had been sent. Of those, 17.9 million were SMSs and 400,000 MMSs.

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Maltese open hearts and wallets to tsunami victims

30/11/19

Malta will today dig into its pockets and donate supplies towards the biggest-ever international relief bid in aid of the tsunami victims.

Businessmen, local councils, contractors, low-salary earners, schoolchildren - Maltese from all walks of life - have already started chipping in to help the millions left homeless and hungry as a result of last week's devastating tidal waves in South East Asia.

Several organisations have launched appeals, many are planning auctions, and communities are delving into their savings in what organisers have described as an unprecedented response to an international emergency appeal.

The charity campaigns will reach a climax today when the Civil Protection Department and L-Istrina organisers, among others, will spend hours raising funds and collecting items through different initiatives.

The government will be sending the items and money to Sri Lanka, a fellow Commonwealth country, which has made a direct request for help from Malta. In Sri Lanka, nearly 30,000 people were killed and one million displaced.

"The generosity we've seen is phenomenal, especially when you consider that all this comes after several fund-raising events over Christmas," Charles Debono, the CPD officer in charge of the co-ordination operation, told The Sunday Times.

The appeals seemed to strike a chord with donors because of the sheer scale of the disaster, the gruesome pictures aired on television, and the festive season.

The CPD will be collecting blankets, tents, tinned food and water today between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. at Maria Regina Junior Lyceum in Blata l-Bajda and Ninu Cremona secondary school in Victoria, Gozo. Scouts from Sliema, Fgura, Naxxar, St Venera and Victoria will collect goods from those who cannot go to the CPD venues.

Seven containers full of water have already been collected, and judging by the enthusiastic response, Mr Debono envisaged that at least 15 containers will be shipped out.

Attrans, a Maltese shipping company, has made available seven of its containers for transporting humanitarian aid to tsunami-stricken countries and pledged to pay freight charges on two of the containers.

Mr Debono said he had been touched by the solidarity shown by people, including a sick elderly couple who went all the way to a CPD centre to donate sheets and tinned food.

Malta will be sending a medical team to Sri Lanka. It includes three doctors and will be headed by a nurse, all of whom were involved in similar work in Kosovo. They will be taking 124,800 blood transfusion and drip infusion kits funded by the Foreign Ministry's Overseas Development Fund, and funds to be raised by L-Istrina and SOS Malta.

All the proceeds from an auction of art works to be held today in a follow-up to L-Istrina TV charity marathon last Sunday will be donated to the victims of the tsunami.

Over Lm26,000 worth of gifts, which were left over from last Sunday's programme, will be given out during today's programme between 1 and 8 p.m.

As L-Istrina's indefatigable presenter, Peppi Azzopardi, explained: "This situation is one of the utmost urgency, and unless our response is an urgent one, more lives will be lost. When we say that with a telephone call you can save a life, we mean it - literally, because the spread of epidemics can claim twice as many lives as those lost in the disaster, unless kept in check. This is why we are appealing for donations."

Mr Azzopardi added that during today's fund-raising programme a number of Maltese who survived the tsunami will be invited to relate their harrowing experience, and a link will be made with the Maltese nationals still undergoing treatment for injuries in Thai hospitals.

Money can be donated by dialling 5004-9005 for a Lm5 donation and 5004-9010 for a Lm10 contribution or by sending an SMS to 5061-9205 for a Lm5 donation.

Contributions can also be sent to SOS Malta, Dar L-Emigrant, Castille Place, Valletta. Donations can also be made through SMS: 5061-7356 for Lm1; and 5061-8074 for Lm2; or by depositing the money in the following bank accounts - APS 20000245111; HSBC 006070932050; and BOV 40013974950.

Persons wishing to help the countries affected by the tsunami can also send an SMS to the Red Cross on one of these numbers: Lm1 - 5061-7364; Lm3 - 5061-8916; and Lm5 - 5061-9213.

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International Sports and Media Group Initiates Deployment of SMS Text Messaging Technology on its Website

30/11/19

International Sports and Media Group (OTCBB:ISME), announced today that ISME will launch SmartSMS's Mobile Text Messaging platform to create and deploy premium Text Messaging services on its recently acquired soccer website, www.ussocceruk.com.

Among the first services to be offered will be "Soccer Alert," a premium SMS Text Messaging service. "Soccer Alert" will enable soccer fans worldwide to use their mobile phones to text and receive the latest Major League Soccer (MLS) and World Soccer news, stats, and video highlights using their mobile phones. ISME generates revenue through a combination of premium ad placements and per Text Message fees billed to users through their local carriers.

SmartSMS USA President, Clarence McDowell comments, "The future of Soccer Entertainment is mobile. Today's mobile technology is capable of delivering text, audio, and video streams to over 1.4 billion mobile phone users world wide. Soccer is the number one sport worldwide. SmartSMS Text Messaging will enable ISME take advantage of this fact by developing a menu of SMS Text Messaging pay on demand and fee based services that are be billed directly to the fans mobile phone.

Using SmartSMS Text Messaging technology, ISME will gain a major advantage over other Soccer internet sites by creating and maintaining both on and offline relationships with Soccer fans. This in turn will enable ISME to deliver 'What you want, when you want it' Soccer news and video to fans on their mobile sets while providing advertisers a new marketing tool capable of placing timely ads in the hands of soccer fans at times when the impulse to buy is at its highest. To understand the revenue impact this could have, one can only imagine being able to send an advertiser sponsored message to millions of Soccer fans worldwide who have agreed to pay a fee to receive up to the minute soccer news, scores, & video clips on their mobile phone. Overtime, additional services will be added such as soccer-themed trivia games, chat services and other content such as ringtones, logo's and screensavers. By the end of 2005, full video motion video streaming will become a standard feature accessible to over 170 million mobile phones in US alone and is already available in many parts of ASIA and Europe just in time for the upcoming 2006 World Cup in Germany. In short, ISME is in perfect position to score big as the desire for targeted mobile Soccer entertainment increases."

Gordon Lee, Chairman and CEO of International Sports and Media Group stated, "We are very excited to kick off the 2005 year with a revenue model that can have a significant impact on our operations. We anticipate completing our test trials over the next 2-4 weeks with users coming online shortly thereafter. Bottom line is we are moving forward aggressively to build shareholder value by putting the numbers on the board and feel that with our strategy of a Soccer Internet rollout combined with the Text Messaging 'Soccer Alert,' we can achieve our objectives. We have identified additional Soccer Internet sites and Soccer businesses that we will aggressively pursue and anticipate additional strategic acquisitions in coming months."

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SMS of hope to lift victims’ spirit

30/11/19

PETALING JAYA: Hope has become the prevailing theme for the “From the Heart” nationwide SMS campaign, as people continued to provide support and raise money for victims of the tsunami tragedy.

“Hope all victims can overcome the problems they’re facing now, and know that there is always new hope ahead, it’s just the matter of time. Frm LKY” read one message that was received for the campaign, which is organised by DiGi Telecommunications, The Star and ntv7.

Some 225 messages were sent in yesterday, with most of them encouraging those affected by the disaster to continue to look for the silver lining in the midst of their suffering.

“BE STRONG. LOOK AT THE BRIGHT SIDE. THERE’S ALWAYS S/THING TO LEARN.” wrote VEROLISA, while a message from KUMARAN read: “May GOD bless you. There is a future waiting for you.”

Other messages even offered their condolences on behalf of entire communities, with zubair writing: “condelences to all the tsunami victims from the whole Pakistani community in Malaysia.”

The “From the Heart” campaign will go on until Jan 14.

All proceeds from the SMS messages sent would be donated to The Star Earthquake/ Tsunami Relief Fund.

Each SMS costs 15 sen and for the first part – “SMS Fund Drive” – DiGi subscribers can contribute money in denominations of RM3, RM5 or RM10 by keying in the amount (e.g. RM10) and sending it to 1996.

Under the second part, entitled the “SMS Words of Support,” all mobile phone users can send dedications and words of encouragement, which will be broadcast live on ntv7 and on the DiGi website at www.digi.com.my.

Contributors will need to register by typing “FROM (space)(username)” and send it to 36677.

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SMS for an SOS: Beware of charges, deductions

30/11/19

Several tsunami disaster relief funds have set up SMS (short message service) channels for the public to donate money quickly and easily.

However, donors should be aware that SMS charges would be incurred, and that part of their donation might be deducted for such charges.

The tsunamis that ravaged the region on Dec 26, causing more than 100,000 deaths and untold damage, have got Malaysians scrambling to render aid.

Cellular services providers say there has been considerable interest among various parties looking to enable people to donate money via SMS, as the rush to provide aid to victims gathers momentum.

Airtime Media Productions (AMP), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Astro All Asia Networks Plc, set up the Tsunami 26/12 Fund, to which people can send RM1 donations via SMS.

SMS donations to the fund – being a third-party donation drive – were subject to deductions arising from charges levied by cellular services providers, an AMP official told In.Tech, adding that the charges “vary from telco to telco.”

To make up the difference, AMP will top up the donations.

"Every sen from each ringgit donated will go to the fund," the official said.

The cellular services providers themselves are gearing up for their own SMS donation drives. DiGi Telecommunications Sdn Bhd last week launched its From the Heart campaign. To kickstart the campaign, which ends on Jan 14, DiGi contributed RM200,000.

DiGi customers can contribute denominations of RM3, RM5 or RM10 by keying in the amount (for example RM10) on their mobile phones and sending it to 1996.

Each SMS sent and acknowledged will cost 15sen, which will also go towards the fund.

Morten Lundal, DiGi's CEO, was in Langkawi during the tragedy (see The Star, Jan 1).

Yesterday, Celcom (Malaysia) Bhd launched its month-long RM5 SMS donation campaign, in support of the Malaysian Tsunami Disaster Fund organised by The New Straits Times, Berita Harian, TV3 and 8TV.

Maxis Communications Bhd is planning a similar drive that is expected to be up soon.

A Celcom official told In.Tech last week that its customers can donate RM5 to the Malaysian Tsunami Disaster Fund by typing “derma” and sending the SMS to 33699. The amount would either go on their postpaid cellular bill or be deducted from their prepaid account.

The company assured donors that the entire RM5 would go to the fund, but the normal 15sen charge for sending the SMS would still apply.

A Maxis official told In.Tech the company would eventually waive the SMS charges on its customers for the planned donation drive, but a charge of 15sen – the “transport cost” – would be levied on messages sent via its network for any third-party SMS donation drive.

“At the moment, there are technical issues to be sorted out before we can implement the waiver, but we are confident of resolving them quickly,” said the official.

Maxis would also forgo its 30% cut of the usual 30:70 revenue-sharing agreements it has with third-party content providers for premium SMS services, the official said.

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Text messages get SOS role

30/11/19

When the tsunami hit Sri Lanka, Sanjaya Senanayake found he could not make calls on his mobile phone or regular land line at first - but he could send and receive text messages from his cellphone.

Senanayake, a 23-year-old television producer, spent last week reporting on the disaster, frantically searching for friends and posting his experiences to the networked world through a Web log, or blog - often via text messages relayed by a friend in Mumbai, India.

"It's a very easy, instant way to get the message across," he said in a mobile phone interview.

Experts say that thousands of deaths might have been avoided if warning systems had been in place to alert the people around the rim of the Indian Ocean of the tsunami. No such system exists there now. Those who design and use the wireless technology known as short message service, or SMS, currently used for chatter and advertisements, say it could be used to jump-start governments' nationwide and regional warning networks.

"This tragedy is going to put this more to the forefront," said Greg Wilfahrt, cofounder of SMS.ac, a company that sells text message services in more than 170 countries and has millions of subscribers in India, Malaysia and Indonesia alone.

The technology is wildly popular worldwide and has accompanied the international boom in mobile phone use, where wireless technology helped nations to leapfrog antiquated government telephone networks.

Even in parts of the developing world, mobile phones are everywhere: Almost half of the Malaysian population uses them, according to a recent survey released by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission. Three out of four of the more than 12 million subscribers send and receive text messages, according to the survey.

"The way they use the cellphones over there, it makes us look like amateurs," said Steve O'Rourke in Grass Valley, California, a director of the Asia Pacific Research Group, which has studied cellphone use. "I could be riding an elephant in the middle of Thailand and my phone would work."

Getting mobile phones into the hands of people living in remote, impoverished areas has been a major focus of economic development efforts for the "microfinance" movement, which involves giving small loans to people in poverty throughout the world to help them start small businesses.

Even a few phones might do the trick in the face of an impending disaster, Senanayake said. "Everybody doesn't need to be connected," he said. Instead, the message need reach only "one person in every locality who has a phone," and that person can spread the word, "even by getting out in the street and shouting."

"The cool thing about mobile messaging is you're not tethered in front of your PC, you don't have to be in front of your television," said Wilfahrt, the text messaging executive. "You don't always have your radio with you, but you do always have your mobile phone with you and you're always connected."

The idea of governments using mobile messages to communicate with citizens is beginning to take hold.

In April 2003, the government of Hong Kong sent out a text message to six million mobile phones to quash a rumor that Hong Kong had been designated an "infected city" for severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS.

The Netherlands, too, is building a network that will allow the government to issue alerts to cellphone users nationwide or within an area of a few city blocks. Citizens will be invited to sign on for the alert service. "You can direct a message to people who are close to an area where there has been an accident," and suggest they take another route, said Nanne Bos, a spokesman for LogicaCMG, which is creating the system.

Still, the risks and costs of false warnings are high. A false warning by the Indian government on Thursday that another tsunami was imminent caused tens of thousands in the southern part of the country to flee their homes, adding to the misery of the disaster last week.

That is why text message warnings "have to be enormously bulletproof," effective and virtually immune to hacking, said James Katz, director of the Center for Mobile Communication Studies at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey. In the past, he said, citizens have not been comfortable with the government having a back door to their personal technology.

An initiative discussed during the administration of Gerald Ford to mandate that all U.S. televisions be designed to turn on automatically for emergency announcements was dropped before it emerged from the Office of Science and Technology Policy, Katz said, because of fears that it would be seen as an Orwellian "Big Brother" program.

Ultimately, warning systems will go only so far to address the problems of disaster reduction, said Kenneth Allen, the executive director of the Partnership for Public Warning, a public-private partnership that urged that national alert systems be upgraded after the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks.

"SMS is a great technology and should be used," Allen said, but he added that the promise of systems like text messaging should not distract policy makers from basics like education about the risk of tsunamis and how to spot natural warning signs like tremors and strange behavior of the sea.

"Strip aside all of the fancy technology," Allen said, and "it's getting the right information to people so they can make the right decision - and in this case, it didn't happen."

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Relief tasks for text messaging

30/11/19

Customers of all six mobile phone carriers in Britain can make donations to disaster relief funds for the areas hit by the Asian tsunamis by sending a text message, the companies said.

It is the first time the networks have joined up to enable text donations, they said. Customers of 3, O2, Orange, T-Mobile, Virgin Mobile or Vodafone can send the message "DONATE" to 83321, and £1.50, or $2.86, is added to their bill or deducted from their credit.

The money sent by SMS, or short message service, is donated to the Disasters Emergency Committee of Britain, of which Oxfam and the British Red Cross are members, the companies said.

Meanwhile, Orange's French unit has sent SMS messages to 3,200 customers who were traveling in the area of the tsunamis on Dec. 25 and 26, asking them to contact the French Foreign Ministry.

France Télécom, which owns Orange, said that the French government had requested the text messages to help account for its citizens. It is possible to identify mobile phone customers who were in the area and had their cellphones on through the registration of their phone numbers in a database of "roaming" customers.

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Disaster attracts hi-tech dregs of society

30/11/19

Modern technology has spawned a variety of hoaxes in the wake of the tsunamis, from fraudulent internet appeals for donations to a bogus text message warning people not to eat seafood from regions affected by the disaster.

Tasmanian police have announced an investigation into a website that purported to be collecting donations for the Red Cross tsunami fund and carried a postal address in the Hobart suburb of Glenorchy.

The website, www.incybernet.com, had featured the Red Cross appeal logo, but was inaccessible by late yesterday due to increased web traffic. It claimed to have raised $10,000 for victims of the disaster.

A Red Cross spokesman said the aid group had never heard of Incybernet, nor had the Australian Council for International Development, which maintains a list of all major charities.

Emails falsely claiming to be from Oxfam and urging people to donate money were also doing the rounds in Hong Kong, according to police.

The fraudulent messages, which claimed to be from the local branch of Oxfam, urged donors to deposit money in a bank account in Cyprus. Hong Kong police said they were unsure whether any money had been raised by the perpetrators.

In Britain, a 40-year-old man was charged in connection to a series of hoax emails sent to friends and relatives of those missing since the disaster.

The email informed recipients that their loved ones were dead.

Purporting to be from the "Foreign Office Bureau" in Thailand, it was sent to people who had placed appeals for information on a website set up by the Sky News television network.

The man was charged with malicious communication and causing a public nuisance, and will appear in a London court overnight, Australian time.

Authorities in Singapore and India warned of hoax mobile phone text messages that claimed a "very dangerous virus" was being spread via seafood in the regions affected by the tsunami.

The message read: "Alert everyone: very dangerous virus, Zulican virus is spreading through seafood. So please avoid eating seafood and pass this message to all of your friends."

But officials said the Zulican virus did not exist and that eating fish in affected regions remained safe.

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RIM, Indiatimes tie up for SMS-based services

30/11/19

MUMBAI: Reliance Infocomm (RIM), the country's largest mobile service provider, has teamed up with Indiatimes.com, the youngest-ever 'Business Super Brand', for SMS-based infotainment services.

The tie-up will allow 90 lakh subscribers to download a wider bouquet of ringtones, including those of popular Indian and western rings, through Indiatimes 8888, an SMS-based infotainment service.

Through R World, RIM's customers will also be able to access other value-added services (VAS) such as games, contests, astrology, jokes and text-based services.

Mahesh Prasad, president, Applications and Solutions group at Reliance Infocomm, said: "Through this tie-up, both our post- and pre-paid customers will have access to polyphonic and rich media content via SMS; 8888's high recall value will tremendously benefit Reliance's growing customer base."

Times Internet CEO Mahendra Swarup said: "People in tier 2 and 3 cities are hungry for entertainment and information, and low internet penetration makes mobiles the only platform to access any news or entertainment."

Reliance Infocomm, which has taken the lead in this initiative, plans to add 4,000 more towns and cities to subscriber base by March 2005. In addition, RIM also plans to make its R World service a paid one soon.

Customers can avail of more features through this joint initiative with Indiatimes planning to launch more specific and personalised services through SMS in the future.

Indiatimes 8888 is the largest recall short code in India, receiving 18 lakh messages per day, more than 40 lakh unique users a month and 1 lakh ringtone downloads per day. It is the largest leading multi-faceted internet portal in India with interests in telecom, e-commerce, online advertisement solutions, events and guru seminars, and has over 1 billion page views a month.

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Festive SMS Fever

30/11/19

South Africans sent text messages to greet family and friends on a massive scale during the festive season, with cellphone service providers MTN and Cell C reporting a doubling in volume of SMS (short messaging service) traffic.

MTN statistics show that about 27 million text messages were carried on its network on Christmas Day, about double that sent in 2003.

More than 39 million calls were successfully connected by MTN on Christmas Day, a 35% increase over 2003.

Sending text messages was evidently no less popular a way to greet people at the turn of the year, with more than 24 million messages being carried by the MTN network on December 31, and more than 20 million on the first day of the new year.

Cell C statistics show that more than four million text messages were sent on December 24 and almost six million on December 25, compared to just over 1.5 million and about two million, respectively, on the same days in 2003.

Cell C's New Year's Eve and New Year's Day traffic doubled to more than nine million messages.

Cell C spokeswoman Happy Zondi said the figures represented messages successfully delivered.

She said sending text messages had gained in popularity: "The cellphone phenomenon is picking up very quickly, and text messages are especially popular."

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SMS aids Proton Edar

30/11/19

THE Consumer InSight product developed by Celcom (M) Bhd based on the short messaging service (SMS) has been a major boost for Proton Edar Sdn Bhd's marketing efforts.

Celcom business development manager Mohd Fadillah Mat Said said the product helped the car company get information on its potential customers based on the feedback received through the SMS.

“Through several SMS contests carried out, participants had given their personal information, information on their vehicles, their rate of satisfaction using a Proton car and other feedback,” he told Bernama after a prize-giving ceremony for winners of the Proton-Celcom SMS Fever: The Norwich City FC Tour in Johor Baru recently.

He said Proton Edar then used this information to identify potential customers and also gauge the satisfaction rate among Proton car users.

Besides market information, the Celcom product could be also used as a promotion tool where information on the latest models of Proton could be sent out to users of the telecommunication service.

Fadillah said the SMS-based product was the latest, fastest and an effective mode of promotion compared with the conventional methods.

Celcom customers meanwhile, would not be charged for any SMS received and would get two RealRewards points for every SMS reply to the system.

Introduced in October, the product had received tremendous response from clients, Fadillah said, adding that Celcom currently had seven major clients including Proton Edar.

On the effectiveness of the product, Proton Edar area chief for Johor East and West, Dr Badrulhisham Mohd Ghazali, said it greatly helped the company as it provided a clearer picture on the potential buyers of Proton cars.

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Text Message Broadcasts Could Provide Disaster Alerts

30/11/19

A feature already built-in to most cellphones could be used to alert every mobile phone user in a specific region to impending disasters, such as the tsunami that devastated south east Asia on 26 December, say experts.

The combination of a tsunami warning system for the Indian Ocean and the ability to broadcast text messages to every mobile phone in the area has the potential to save many lives should another tsunami strike.

At an emergency summit held in Jakarta, Indonesia, on Thursday, world leaders called for the development of such an early-warning system. One such system already guards the shores of the Pacific Ocean, though without the text message component.

Early warning sensors would be relatively simple and, at a cost of about $20 million, relatively inexpensive to set up. But experts say these must be combined with an effective means of alerting the population to imminent danger.

The GSM cellphone standard already enables phones to receive short data messages from the nearest cellphone base station on a separate channel from normal voice and text message communications. The Cellular Emergency Alerts System Association (CEASA), a non-governmental organisation based in the UK, is campaigning to have the system turned into a disaster warning service.

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Early Mobile Alert System Seen as Key to Saving Lives in Future Emergencies

30/11/19

The host to the largest mobile community in the world (www.sms.ac/corporate) has begun working with foreign governments in the hope that an early warning system can be created using mobile communication. SMS.ac contends that a mobile communication-based alert system could potentially save thousands of lives in the wake of a future tsunami, earthquake, fire or other emergency.

SMS.ac's (www.sms.ac) chairman and chief executive officer, Michael Pousti, says that the technology for a global warning system is already in place. "SMS.ac currently possesses the ability to send wireless communications to millions of mobile phone users in upwards of 170 countries," said Pousti. "Cooperation is now required from government officials to implement a rapid-response alert system that can save lives, today. In that vein, SMS.ac is contacting various governmental agencies to see what can be done to put mobile alert systems in place, in the near-term."

Discussions with government officials in Indonesia, India and others are underway to explore what immediate steps can be taken for countrywide rollout of a mobile emergency warning system. Pousti asserts that deaths from tsunamis, earthquakes, fires and other disasters might be drastically reduced with the introduction of a mobile-based warning system. The SMS.ac CEO states that alerts sent to mobile handsets would be far more effective and timely than traditional warning systems currently employed.

"Televisions, computers and radios are not always on and certainly not a reliable form of alert," said Pousti. "However, a recent survey of 50,345 SMS.ac members demonstrated that 87.3 percent of respondents keep their mobile phones with them and powered-up at all times. SMS.ac technology and connectivity make it possible right now to simultaneously alert large populations to danger at any time, wherever they may be. That kind of accessibility is not possible with any other medium or with any other company."

In a report published in London on Thursday by the UN Millennium Project Task Force on Science, Technology and Innovation, lead author Colestous Juma raised the question of whether scientific projects such as tsunami early warning systems are being given enough attention.

"The terrible devastation caused by the tsunamis last week raises the question of whether enough was invested in adopting existing technologies which could have reduced the scale of the disaster," Juma said. "In a knowledge-based economy, leaders and governments increasingly need science advisors to make effective use of emerging technologies."

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Infosys Q3 results on SMS, voice & WAP

30/11/19

Bangalore: Infosys, which will announce third-quarter results on January 12, plans to make the highlights available to mobile users through SMS, voice and WAP.

The company has tied up with cellular service providers such as Airtel and Hutch in this regard.

For accessing the highlights using SMS, users must type `Infosys' or `Infy' and send it to 6388, which will bring them updates from news channel, NDTV.

Similarly, mobile users can also type in `R Infosys' or `Results Infosys' and send SMS to 2622 to access highlights from CNBC-TV18.

Airtel subscribers can hear the results in English, Hindi and Kannada on 2255 and Hutch subscribers on 123463 (123INF), said a company release.

To access results using WAP in English and Hindi, subscribers can log on to http://mobile.infosys.com/results from a WAP-enabled phone.

Results on SMS will be available after 10 a m and on voice and WAP after 10:30 a m on January 12. Voice and WAP services are powered by OnMobile systems, an Infosys-incubated company.

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More than 1,000 SMS received

30/11/19

“The beauty of the morning isn't the sunrise, but the thought of God giving us another day to see us through life. May God bless all in these trying times,” wrote kirti.

Poignant messages such as these have been flowing in for the victims of the tsunami disaster for the “From the Heart” nationwide SMS campaign.

Another 150 messages were received yesterday bring the total to over 1,000 SMS received for the five-day campaign.

Many Malaysians have been moved and touched by the plight of the tsunami victims, and the messages did not hold back in expressing their sorrow over the victims’ loss of loved ones in the disaster.

“I cry silently when I read, hear and see your misery. I pray God will strengthen you,” wrote sadeyes, while a message from Bavani read: “Why does my heart ache so much? I cry 4u, I care 4u, I pray 4u! Just remember we r all here 4u.”

The “From the Heart” campaign, organised by DiGi Telecommunications, The Star and ntv7, will go on until Jan 14. All proceeds from the SMS messages sent would be donated to The Star Earthquake/ Tsunami Relief Fund.

Each SMS costs 15sen and for the first part – “SMS Fund Drive” – DiGi subscribers can contribute money in denominations of RM3, RM5 or RM10 by keying in the amount (e.g. RM10) and sending it to 1996.

In the second part, “SMS Words of Support”, all mobile phone users can send messages and words of encouragement, which can be accessed on the DiGi website at www.digi.com.my

Contributors will need to register by typing “FROM (space)(username)” and send it to 36677.

Upon receiving a confirmation message, users can reply and send in their messages by typing “MSG(space)(user dedication)” and send it to the same number.

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3 hospitals in Shanghai take SMS reservations

30/11/19

Three local hospitals in Shanghai announced yesterday they will begin to set up out-patient appointments, offer medical consultation and take patient complaints through cell phone short messages.

This is the first time local residents have been offered such medical services via text messages.

After a two-week trial, Shanghai Ren'ai Hospital, Shanghai Hushen Eye, Ear, Nose, Throat and Stomatology Hospital and Shanghai Yinhe Hospital, which are all run by a Shenzhen-based medical group, put the "cell phone hospital" program into full swing.

"Patients can reserve out-patient service one day beforehand through sending a short message to 136-0166-6366.

They can then visit the doctor at the reserved time," said Liu Chunlong, a spokesman for Ren'ai.Liu said the program was set up to save patients from spending hours in hospital waiting rooms. Liu noted that appointments can also be canceled by short message.

The three hospitals did note, however, that only a few patients used the service during the trial, some of whom failed to show up for the appointment they booked. Enditem

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Brits smash New Year text messaging record

30/11/19

Despite video and picture messaging, Brits are still in love with good old-fashioned texting - this New Year, we sent over 130 million of them.

According to the Mobile Data Association (MDA), SMS messages sent by the UK's thumbs this hogmanay were up 20 per cent on the same period last year.

And the upward trend for texting is set to continue, the MDA believes. The Association believes the UK will send 25 billion texts in 2004 and could send as many as 30 billion this year - around 500 messages for each person in the UK.

Global mobile messaging revenue could reach $69bn by 2007, according to analysts.

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Cingular Customers Can Use Text Messaging to Help Victims of Tsunamis

30/11/19

Cingular Wireless said today it is offering many of its customers the opportunity to use text messaging -- free of charge -- to make contributions that will help victims of the cataclysmic tsunamis that hit South Asia and East Africa on Dec. 26. Separately, the company and its employees will donate up to $2 million to disaster relief efforts.

"We are encouraging our customers and our employees to do what they can to help. Every contribution, small or large, can make a big difference in providing relief to the people affected by this disaster," said Stan Sigman, president and chief executive officer of Cingular. "In the coming days and weeks, Cingular will look at other forms of assistance we might provide."

Beginning today, many Cingular customers will receive a free text message inviting them to make a donation of $1.99 or $.99 to one of three organizations: The International Fund of the American Red Cross, UNICEF, and the Save the Children Fund. Customers simply need to reply to the text message -- which is also free -- with the organization they choose and the amount they wish to give. One hundred percent of their donation will automatically go to the agency selected, and that charge will appear on their next bill, the company said.

"If all of these customers make even a small contribution, they would have a significant impact on the recovery efforts. In an effort like this, the word 'small' has no meaning," Sigman continued. "Cingular chose these three relief agencies because their unparalleled record of getting aid to those who need it most."

Separately, the company and it employees have made a commitment to provide up to $2 million in assistance to victims of the tsunamis. Cingular will match up to $1 million in employee contributions to The International Fund of the American Red Cross, UNICEF, and Save the Children.

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Text messages aid disaster recovery

30/11/19

The messages can get through even when the cell phone signal is too weak to sustain a spoken conversation.

Now some are studying how the technology behind SMS could be better used during an emergency.

Sanjaya Senanayake works for Sri Lankan television. The blogging world, though, might know him better by his online name, Morquendi.

He was one of the first on the scene after the tsunami destroyed much of the Sri Lankan coast. Cell phone signals were weak. Land lines were unreliable.

So Mr Senanayake started sending out text messages. The messages were not just the latest news they were also an on-the-ground assessment of "who needs what and where".

Blogging friends in India took Mr Senanayake's text messages and posted them on a weblog called Dogs without Borders.

Thousands around the world followed the story that unfolded in the text messages that he sent.

And that's when Mr Senanayake started to wonder if SMS might be put to more practical use.

"SMS networks can handle so much more traffic than the standard mobile phone call or the land line call," he says.

Weblogs aid disaster recovery
"In every rural community, there's at least one person who has access to a mobile phone, or has a mobile phone, and can receive messages."

Half a world away, in the Caribbean nation of Trinidad and Tobago, Taran Rampersad read Morquendi's messages.

Mr Rampersad, who used to work in the military, knew how important on the ground communication can be in times of disaster.

He wondered if there might be a way to automatically centralise text messages, and then redistribute them to agencies and people who might be able to help.

Mr Rampersad said: "Imagine if an aid worker in the field spotted a need for water purification tablets, and had a central place to send a text message to that effect.

"He can message the server, so the server can send out an e-mail message and human or machine moderators can e-mail aid agencies and get it out in the field."

He added: "Or, send it at the same time to other people who are using SMS in the region, and they might have an excess of it, and be able to shift supplies to the right places."

Mr Rampersad and others had actually been thinking about such a system since Hurricane Ivan ravaged the Caribbean and the southern United States last September.

Last week, he sent out e-mail messages asking for help in creating such a system for Asia.

The idea for the text alert system came out of another disaster
In only 72 hours, he found Dan Lane, a text message guru living in Britain.

The pair, along with a group of dedicated techies, are creating what they call the Alert Retrieval Cache.

The idea is to use open-source software - software can be used by anyone without commercial restraint - and a far-flung network of talent to create a system that links those in need with those who can help.

"This is a classic smart mobs situation where you have people self-organizing into a larger enterprise to do things that benefit other people," says Paul Saffo, a director at the California-based Institute for the Future.

"You may be halfway around the world from someone, but in cyberspace you're just one click or one e-mail away," he said,

"That's put a whole new dimension on disaster relief and recovery, where often people halfway around the world can be more effective in making something happen precisely because they're not right on top of the tragedy."

It is still very early days for the project, though.

In an e-mail, Dan Lane calls it "an early proof of concept." Right now, the Alert Retrieval Cache can only take a text message and automatically upload it to a web-page, or distribute it to an e-mail list.

In the near future, the group says it hopes to take in messages from people in affected areas, and use human moderators to take actions based on the content of those messages.

But there's still another challenge. You have to get people to know that the system is there for them to use.

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Mobile phones to the rescue

30/11/19

The most common use of mobiles, of course, is in tracking down tourists who have been stranded after the tidal waves. One story posted on Yahoo News said that 36 British tourists and 35 Hong Kong-based workers were rescued in Sri Lanka after their mobile phones, which had international roaming, were traced by the rescuers.

The story said 10,252 international roaming phones were working on Sri Lankan networks at the time of the tragedy. The Tidal Wave Rescue Centre sent text messages to all of the numbers and received more than 2,000 responses.

Even when the tourists did not know where they were after the tsunamis, rescuers were able to trace the signal and track them from where they were stranded.

Families and relatives were easily updated by loved ones in affected countries through mobile phones as they found landlines had been knocked out by the waves.

Australian telecommunications companies Optus and Telstra joined in the effort to help victims by giving rebates on mobile phone calls made by Australians trying to contact their family and friends in areas affected by the disaster.

Optus offered a mobile call charges rebate from December 26 to 31, while Telstra offered rebates to customers who were travelling to affected countries from Boxing Day until December 30.

Telstra is also giving organisations providing on-ground-support a one-month rebate of their fixed, mobile and Internet costs.

Aside from the obvious use of mobile phones, telecommunications companies all over the world have also set up text messaging programs which allow people to make donations.

In Italy, for instance, reports said mobile phone operators made a single number available for donations and sent text or voice messages to their customers appealing to them to send in one euro (US$1.35).

With the program being quicker, more spontaneous and less costly than a bank transfer, Italy was able to raise 14 million euros in the first 5 days after the tsunami tragedy. The special text messaging capability also allows users to send 1.5 euros to a special Asia fund by simply typing "give" and sending it to a specific number.

According to another report, France Telecom's mobile phone subsidiary Orange has also deployed a system which allows customers to send donations to the Red Cross.

In Germany, the organisers of New Year festivities asked users to send a text message that automatically transferred 2.65 euros (US$3.60) to the account of the United Nations Children's Fund, UNICEF.

According to another report, one journalist in Sri Lanka has found an even more creative use for text messaging. In order to bypass the filtered information released by the government, Sanjay Senanayake, a documentary producer in Sri Lanka, sent text messages accounting his daily findings in the site to a friend in Bombay, who then publishes it through his blogspot. Senanayake said he has sent almost 4,000 text messages to his friend. He found that landlines were down and mobile phone voice networks were jammed but strangely enough, SMS was working fine.

Senanayake believes that the government should use text messaging as an early warning system to people. He believes that like the warning drums of olden days, all the government needs is one person in the rural area to get the warning and to spread the message to everyone else in the region.

But for every positive use of the mobile phone, there are is a bad one. Mobiles have been used to disseminate cruel hoaxes, for example. The Singapore government recently brushed aside an SMS hoax being spread around the country about a "very dangerous virus" called Zulican that could allegedly be contracted from contaminated seafood. The Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority in Singapore said the alleged virus "does not even exist".

People will now have to be on guard against malicious users concocting such hoaxes, which can range from the merely annoying to the distressing or financially damaging. Some could even exploit the situation to use text messaging to spread rumours about the death of a loved one. I know, because it has happened to me before.

Hopefully, users are educated enough to verify the source of the message first before proceeding to donate or believe what the message is saying.

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Cingular Steps Up Text Messaging For Relief Efforts

30/11/19

Cingular Wireless is offering many of its customers the opportunity to use text messaging to make contributions that will help victims of the tsunamis that hit South Asia and East Africa on Dec. 26. Separately, the company and its employees will donate up to $2 million to disaster relief efforts.

'We are encouraging our customers and our employees to do what they can to help. Every contribution, small or large, can make a big difference in providing relief to the people affected by this disaster,' said Stan Sigman, president and CEO of Cingular, in a statement. 'In the coming days and weeks, Cingular will look at other forms of assistance we might provide.'

Many Cingular customers will receive a free text message inviting them to make a donation of $1.99 or 99 cents to one of three organizations: The International Fund of the American Red Cross, UNICEF and the Save the Children Fund. Customers who reply with the organization of their choice and donation amount will see the charge on their next bill.

Many other telecom companies have stepped up to help as well, with several European mobile operators prompting their customers to donate through text messaging. Telecom Italia said its test message relief fund effort helped raise $20 million by the end of last week.

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Text messaging could help combat catastrophes like tsunami

30/11/19

A new report, which was presented at a summit in Jakarta, Indonesia, this week, has suggested that a feature already built-in to most cell phones could be used to alert every mobile phone user in a specific region to impending disasters, such as the tsunami that devastated south east Asia on 26 December.

Experts said that the combination of a tsunami warning system for the Indian Ocean and the ability to broadcast text messages to every mobile phone in the area has the potential to save many lives should another tsunami strike, reports New Scientist.

The experts said that their should be an emergency warning system in all parts of the world and that early warning sensors would be relatively simple and, at a cost of about 20 million dollars, relatively inexpensive to set up. But experts say these must be combined with an effective means of alerting the population to imminent danger.

They said that it would require a customised PC to be installed at the headquarters of each network operator. This contains the geographical co-ordinates of all phone masts, enabling operators to target emergency messages to all phones in the required region.

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Brits text messaging more than ever

30/11/19

The text messaging service that started in the late 80s as a way of communication for phone engineers busy building the mobile network has now become the most used mobile technology on the planet.

Text message or Telenote as it was called in 1993 was introduced in the consumer market by Vodafone. Very soon other phone operators followed the trend and text messaging became popular in 1998.

A recent survey done by Mobile Data Association (MDA) shows how deep rooted this technology has become in our day to day communication. The data collected by them showed that British phone users had sent 25 billion texts in 2004. This is 4.5 billion more than the number of text messages sent last year. It is estimated that they will send as many as 30 billion this year. That comes to around 500 messages per person UK.

The number of text messages that swarmed over the mobile network on the New Year eve were 20% more than those sent on last years eve.

The survey shows that last month at least 2.27 billion text messages were sent "person to person" or in other words it is 75.6 million texts a day! Never before had mobile messaging had reached this figure.

The number of messages sent is rapidly rising. For mobile market this means a lift in revenue where it could reach $69bn by 2007.

It is surprising how video and other multimedia messaging options have not affected the growth of text messaging trend. Perhaps the answer lies in the simplicity and comfort of text messaging.

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Wireless World: Text messaging for meds

30/11/19

Physicians now have a technological solution to an all too common scenario -- a cardiac patient forgets to take his heart medication and winds up in the emergency room.

Doctors are sending text-message reminders to patients, via mobile phones and personal digital assistants, telling them it's time to take their prescribed angiotensin converting enzyme or ACE inhibitor, like Prinivil, or other medications.

"One of our major thrusts is going to be moving healthcare related applications to technologies that are more familiar to the patients," said Dr. Joseph Kvedar, vice chairman of dermatology at the Harvard Medical School, and a director of Partners Telemedicine.

"This is going to be a tool to monitor congestive heart failure," Kvedar said. "Weight is an indicator of health here. These patients tend to collect fluid and get short of breath, and wind up in the emergency room. But if you track their weight, can determine if they are getting sick, you can keep people out of the institution and take care of them in a higher-quality way."

Ultimately, the information gathered remotely at a patient's home and transmitted wirelessly may be even more accurate than what has been accumulated, historically, in the doctor's office, due to the anxiety a patient may feel when visiting the physician for a chronic illness.

"Text messaging is not the same as sitting across from the person," Kvedar said. "But not every interaction with your provider needs to be highly emotional. The blood pressure check is an example. We've put up with this over the years, but it probably is highly inaccurate in the doctors office and inconvenient for you."

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SMS Ready to Explode in U.S. Market

30/11/19

By now almost everyone has experienced a text message on their mobile phone. Whether it be a service alert from their wireless provider or a text message from an individual; text is the newest way to get Mobile content for your cell phone! and it is getting ready to explode in the U.S.

SMS stands for Short Message Service, commonly called text messaging. The U.S. has lagged behind Europe, Asia and Australia where billions of messages are transmitted and the medium is maturing. A reported 2.3 billion text messages are being sent monthly in the U.K., and millions of consumers are downloading ringtones, wallpaper and games for their mobile. In America, the platform is set for explosive growth in 2005. Nearly 170 million people now have a cell phone in the U.S.

One company, SMS Media Group (SMSMG) out of Aliso Viejo, California projects over 300 million SMS messages to go through its proprietary mobile messaging platform, http://smsdelivery.net. "We help companies build and manage their mobile customer databases," says Gary Brooks, the company's President. "Our delivery solution is highly flexible for content providers, and we can get their SMS application live in days," says Brooks.

SMSMG has a mobile messaging platform that companies leverage to send content to opt-in subscribers' mobile phones. Games Inc. (OTC BB:GMSI) utilizes their technology to send lottery results on over 200 nationwide state lottery games; SnoCountry Mountain Reports uses it to send snow conditions for over 500 mountain resorts in North America; and other content providers use it to send news, religion, astrology, and promotional alerts.

Many Internet portals have already jumped on the SMS medium including Google, Yahoo and MSN. Text messaging will be the platform of choice for new, direct mobile data services such as stock quotes, news alerts, daily horoscopes, and other content to be delivered to cell phone subscribers.

Expect to get everything on your phone from news to your bank balance in the coming months as text messaging rolls out in North America.

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Manila police launches text hotline, training center

30/11/19

THE WESTERN Police District marked its 104th anniversary on Saturday with the launching of projects that would make these better services possible.
The WPD Training Center and the text hotline program 700-PIT were formally launched as WPD director Chief Supt. Pedro Bulaong vowed to improve the district's performance to help uplift the image of the police.

The training center, which was first opened in 1922 but later closed down, aims to provide specialized courses to policemen who want to improve their craft or specialize in a certain field. It will also offer courses in governance and on the history and geography of Manila.

The WPD also launched the its text hotline which was set up in cooperation with Smart Communications Inc.

People can send a text message to the WPD about any kind of criminal activity or community problem in Manila by typing WPD, space, their message and then sending it to 700-PIT (700-748).

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Victims Get Sms Donations

30/11/19

Bandar Seri Begawan - The launching of donation via SMS for the Tsunami Victims Humanitarian Fund was held at the premises of the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports. Awang Haji Jemat bin Haji Ampal, the Permanent Secretary at the. Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports was the guest of honour at the ceremony.

It is convenient and accessible for every Easi and Prima mobile phone users to just contribute for the Tsunami victims whereby they just need to type tsunami l, 5, 10, 15, 20 and send to 8885555. For example, if you wish to donate $5. Type: tsunami 5 and send to 8885555. For further information just type tsunami? Donations can be made $1,$5, $10,$15 or $20.

A 100 per cent of the donations will go to the Tsunami Victims Humanitarian Fund. DST GROUP, Radio Television Brunei, Mach Telecommunications Systems Sdn Bhd, Kristal FM, Brunei Press Sdn Bhd and Deloitte & Touche jointly supported the donation through SMS for the Tsunami Victims Humanitarian Fund. For further enquiries about the fund, www:machbrunei.com.

Deputy Managing Director of DST Group, Awang Haji Saiful Bahri bin Pehin Dato Hj Jaya, was also present at the launching. He also presented DST Group's donation of $30,000 to the fund to the guest of honour.

Awang Haji Saiful Bahri hoped that every mobile phone user would make a donation through SMS.

The highlight of the ceremony was the guest of honour initiating the donation through SMS for the Tsunami Victims Humanitarian Fund.

Meanwhile, RTB reported that the first day's operation of the SMS Brunei Cares service has amassed $16,547 by l0pm yesterday.

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SMS Text Messaging & Youth Debt One

30/11/19

The predictable but seldom-considered effect of the recently available technology combined with the social role instant messaging and SMS play are leading to bills that youth and parents alike can't afford.

'Many high school and college students accustomed to sending unlimited instant messages on their computers do not adapt easily to text messaging's pay-per-message format, and end up with unexpectedly high bills' ranging from $300 to $800 per month.

One school principal says that 'many students were blindsided by costs associated with text-messaging and other features, like customized ring tones"

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Sharing the grief of victims

30/11/19

Pouring out words of motivation, hope and prayers, caring Malaysians continue to share their grief with the tsunami victims via The Star's SMS campaign, From The Heart.

There was also a reminder from fRzKC that Malaysians must be better prepared in future to face such disasters and to prevent sad loss of lives.

The messenger wrote: “My heart runs heavy. Through this message, maybe it can walk steady. The waves took things; it shook up beings. Next time, let's be ready.”

Sender PAWAN wrote: “If good days didn't last, bad days won't either. Have faith.”

Another contributor, Silver, sent this simple message: “Karma said good things come after bad things goes.”

Some 170 messages were received yesterday in the SMS campaign, which will give all proceeds to The Star Earthquake Tsunami Relief Fund.

Each SMS costs 15sen, and for the first part – “SMS Fund Drive” – DiGi subscribers can contribute money in denominations of RM3, RM5 or RM10 by keying in the amount (e.g. RM10) and sending it to 1996.

In the second part – “SMS Words of Support” – users of all mobile phones can send messages and words of encouragement, which can be accessed on the DiGi website at www.digi.com.my

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Text-message fans rack up debt, 1 dime at a time

30/11/19

Chaz Albert, a freshman at Mercy College in Dobbs Ferry, N.Y., is a passionate "texter," someone who loves to send and receive pithy text messages via cell phone. He does it at home, at school and at work. He often prefers texting over talking on his cell phone.

Last month, though, Albert's habit caught up with him. Only $80 of his $400 cell phone charges were his father's, and most of his own, he said, were for text-messaging.

"I was shocked, but I couldn't do anything about it," he said. "I didn't realize that I got charged for reading text messages. My dad was just like: 'Hey, it's your problem. Pay it.' "

In the past two years, text messages -- which cell carriers generally limit to 160 characters -- have become a rage among teenagers, who embrace the technology as yet another mental way to escape a boring class or stay in touch with friends.

But text-messaging can be pricy. Although phone companies offer relatively inexpensive packages -- like Verizon Wireless' $9.99 for 1,000 messages a month -- industry experts say that carriers sometimes fail to draw customers' attention to the cost-saving deals, and that customers themselves often exceed the number of messages allowed. In those cases, sending a text message usually costs 10 cents; the cost of receiving one ranges from 2 to 10 cents.

Many students accustomed to sending unlimited instant messages on their computers do not adapt easily to text messaging's pay-per-message format and end up with unexpectedly high bills when they get involved in keypad conversations that involve hundreds, even thousands, of messages a month. The results are angry confrontations with parents, long-term payment plans and the loss of cell phone privileges.

"It's relatively addictive, and it's only when that first massive bill comes in that you realize that a dime a throw can run up a large bill," said Lee Rainie, director of the Pew Internet and American Life Project, a nonprofit group.

Text-messaging has flourished for years in Europe and Asia, where it is immensely popular among young people. In the United States, activity was limited until 2002, when a breakthrough in the wireless market allowed short text messages to be sent among customers of the major cellular carriers. Previously, customers could send messages only to those who used the same carrier.

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Survey: Ringtones, SMS top of the heap in 2004

30/11/19

A year-ender survey conducted by a Boston-based communications and networking research group revealed that ringtones and text messaging (or SMS) led the way in the upsurge of wireless data services in the US market in 2004.

In its "2004 Mobile User Survey," research firm The Yankee Group said "the awareness of wireless data services skyrocketed during the past year, particularly around more mature services such as text messaging and ringtones."

The company did not mention the methodology it used in conducting the poll and the areas in the US it covered.

"This year has been a good year in wireless data. By the end of the second quarter of 2004, wireless data users totaled almost 47 million (or more than one-quarter of the total wireless subscriber base), up more than 58 percent from 29 million in mid-2003," the report said.

The Yankee Group said wireless data revenue in the second quarter of 2004 approached $1 billion, up 160 percent from roughly $367 million for the second quarter of 2003. "By yearend 2004, we anticipate almost one-third of wireless users will be using wireless data and annual revenue will top $4 billion."

But despite the increase in the use of wireless data, there are still barriers that impede the growth of the sector, the research firm noted. "For those consumers who do not use wireless data, the primary obstacle to adoption is the lack of a clear value proposition.

Other obstacles to adoption, particularly within younger segments, include pricing and services availability (i.e., handsets, breadth of data services available on some prepaid packages)."

The report indicated however, that despite these hurdles, nearly 75 percent of all respondents from the 2004 survey said that if they had another $5 to $10 of disposable income to spend on wireless data, they would be willing to spend it.

"The results also show that there is no single killer app in wireless data. If carriers — in partnership with their vendors and content provider partners - can focus on improving the user experience, delivering targeted content and apps that appeal to a diverse customer base, and addressing pricing- and availability-related issues for select segments, the near-term prospects look good," it added.

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Verizon Wireless Respond to Tsunami Disaster

30/11/19

Verizon Wireless, the nation's most reliable wireless network, has mobilized their customers nationwide to aide with relief for the victims of the recent tsunami disaster in Asia by encouraging donations to Atlanta-based CARE, one of the world's leading humanitarian organizations fighting global poverty.

Beginning Monday, Jan. 10, Verizon Wireless post-pay customers with phones capable of text messaging can use their phones to send a text message to the address 4CARE (42273) using the keyword "gift." They will receive a reply message asking them to confirm a donation to CARE of $5.00. To do so, customers will press "Y" on their keypad, and send that message. Customers wishing to donate more than once can send up to four additional text messages to 4CARE, for a total contribution of $25.00. The donations will appear on the customer's next monthly bill, and the entire amount of each donation will be provided to CARE's South Asia earthquake and tsunami relief efforts. Standard text messaging rates apply, and will be donated by Verizon Wireless to CARE when the program is completed in early February. Donations to CARE under this program are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law.

In addition, the company, whose South Area Headquarters are located in Alpharetta, is matching employee contributions, including over 3,000 employees in Georgia, 2-to-1 through January 31 via the company's Verizon Foundation. Through employee and company contributions to date, the Foundation contribution is at over $2.5 million dollars in just one week for the American Red Cross and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). Verizon Wireless customers can also donate online to these two organizations via the company's website: www.verizonwireless.com.

"Verizon Wireless is, as a company, extremely committed to our communities - both locally and worldwide. Our customers send more than 1 billion text messages per month, and we're glad to put this technology to use for such an important cause," said Georgia/Alabama Region President Jim McGean. "Our employees are always at the ready to provide support where needed, whether it's hurricane relief here in the south, domestic violence prevention programs in Georgia, or even something as globally disastrous as the recent tsunamis."

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SMS enlisted for Tsunami warning system?

30/11/19

Discussions among officials in India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Thailand, which were hard hit by the killer tsunami, along with France, have begun in just the last few days, according to a source familiar with the plans.

The goal is to supplement older systems that proved little help for nations in the path of the immense waves in late December that have so far killed more than 140,000 people in 11 countries. Already emerging from the wreckage are tales of emergency workers and stricken residents using SMS (short message service) to aid in rescue efforts or keep in touch with loved ones. Sri Lankan officials have already used text messages to distribute information on how to get aid.

"We hope to have something tangible in place by mid-April," said Greg Wilfahrt, executive vice president and co-founder of SMS.AC, a wireless e-mail provider that has relationships with carriers in 170 nations. The company has offered its infrastructure and carrier connections to become the basis of the SMS warning system. SMS.AC is also coordinating the talks between the various nations.

Using SMS as an early warning system makes sense in theory, though it would be immensely difficult to carry out, according to analysts. Because cell phone owners typically carry their handsets with them, cell phones could be a much more suitable means of relaying information instantly to those in harm's way. Existing warning systems funnel warnings through various intermediaries and rely on televisions or radios.

Yankee Group analyst John Jackson said the effort could have an enormous upside, given that most phones now are capable of sending and receiving text messages. However, coordination could be a big headache. "It could mitigate the capital expense of setting up sirens and other bits of early warning systems," he said. "But one of the major problems could be who's going to assure that message actually gets through?"

There is precedent for such a system. Both Hong Kong and the Netherlands already incorporate SMS into their own emergency systems. To pull it off on a worldwide scale, all that's really needed is a database of telephone numbers to send messages to. But such efforts are gigantic and could take months to implement just on a regional scale.

Many nations were caught unprepared for the tsunami, especially those that had not signed onto the existing tsunami early warning system. Also, a report published by the UN Millennium Project Task Force on Science, Technology and Innovation last week questioned whether tsunami early warning systems are being given enough attention.

But the SMS effort raises some questions. As most wireless dialers are well-aware, cell phone coverage is spotty at best, and only gets worse when infrastructure is damaged. Roaming agreements, however, may help improve the system's range.

Also, while nearly a third of the planet owns a cell phone, there are still billions of people who do not, which would leave them out of the loop with this system.

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SMS Pushes Tsunami Donations Past $60,400

30/11/19

Bandar Seri Begawan - The recently launched campaign to raise donations via SMS for the Tsunami Victims Humanitarian Fund has kept the thumbs of many generous mobile phone users busy.

The SMS donation drive has so far raised about $60,463 from the public.

As the Bulletin has been informed that the closing date for tsunami donations via SMS will be announced at a later date, the public still have time to make their contribution through SMS.

Hj Ismawi bin Dato Kifli, General Manager of Kristal Merchandising, told the Bulletin that this donation campaign is jointly supported by DST Group, Radio Television Brunei, Mach Telecommunications Systems Sdn Bhd, Kristal FM and audited by Deloitte & Touche.

He thanked the public for supporting the SMS donation drive, adding that it is an easy and convenient way to donate to help the victims of the tsunami disaster.

In an interview with the Bulletin, a woman who donated via SMS, said that it was one of the best charity initiatives that made full use of technology to contribute to the disaster relief effort. She added that the method saves time.

For EASI and PRIMA mobile users to contribute, they just need to type tsunami<1,5,l0,l5,20> and send to 8885555. For example, if you wish to donate $5: Type: tsunami 5 and send to 8885555. Donations can be made in denominations of $1, $5, $10, $15 or $20.

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Banks criticised for muddying phishing waters

30/11/19

A number of UK banks have been criticised for a lack of consistency and an irresponsible approach to contacting customers already troubled by the threat of phishing.

Over the past year the number and the sophistication of phishing scams has increased dramatically, leading many consumers to be suspicious of almost any unsolicited contact purporting to be from their bank.

But many banks aren't helping matters it would seem, with some seemingly contacting customers out of the blue and requesting personal data.

One silicon.com reader, Paul Green, was concerned when he received unsolicited automated phone calls, purporting to be from his bank Egg, asking him to call a given number and divulge personal information, such as his date of birth, which is used to access his account.

Green assumed he was being targeted by a phishing scam and contacted the bank.

"I rang Egg to let them know what's been going on, only to find the call was from them," said Green. "Considering how many phishing scams have been going around this year it strikes me as a little odd that Egg is carelessly behaving like the scammers."

Green expressed concerns that if such forms of 'out of the blue' contact become commonplace it could pave the way for scammers to get all the necessary log-in details for unsuspecting bank customers in just a couple of short phone calls - possibly asking for seemingly random characters from their password each time before piecing it all together.

Egg says the calls are an "anti-fraud system" which automatically contacts customers to verify certain transactions if they look at all suspicious.

A spokeswoman for Egg said given the time-sensitive nature of any card fraud means it is sometimes vital to contact customers 'out of the blue' but she added that customers should always call the main bank number (08451 233 233) if they receive any communication via phone, email or post, purporting to be from the bank that they think is at all suspicious.

Ironically it is that 'out of the blue' nature of such unsolicited anti-fraud measures which have raised concerns about the calls themselves being part of a scam. In some respects the banks are caught in a no-win situation.

Banks are aware that customers would be the first to complain if their accounts were emptied by a series of unusual transactions, but so are they likely to complain if they think their bank is creating a climate of uncertainty which could be tempting to phishers.

Egg certainly isn't alone. Many banks appear to have wrestled with this 'damned if we do and damned if we don't' conundrum of contacting customers on an 'as and when' basis.

A spokesman for LloydsTSB said the bank will occasionally contact customers via text message, or automated phone message, if necessary and like Egg attributed this to anti-fraud measures in attempting to swiftly crack down on potentially fraudulent activity.

silicon.com has seen text messages received by LloydsTSB customers who claim the bank contacted them out of the blue via SMS following missed credit card payments.

However, the LloydsTSB spokesman said the bank would never request customers divulge anywhere near the level of personal information required to complete a phishing scam, following such a solicitation.

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InPS SMS upgrade allows for care service alerts

30/11/19

In Practice Systems (InPS) has announced an extension to its Vision system that will allow general practices not only to send out text messages to remind people of appointments but also to inform patients of flu vaccinations and other care services.

The Patient Care Messaging (PCM) system sends messages through an external internet gateway called Voice Connect. The upgrade represents another option on the communication menu for practices who want to target one particular group of patients, and can also be used to send appointment reminders by text message.

Chris Shelley, Business Development Manager at InPS, told E-Health Insider: "The advantage of text messaging is two-fold, it's instantaneous, and it's trackable." Text messaging also works out cheaper at only 7p per message, explained Shelley, and was more immediate.

The software already allows patient databases to be searched for particular demographics, such as new mothers. A sub-search in the results can then be done for those with mobiles. The patient list can be reviewed manually, and a text message can then be sent to each person over NHSNet.

As PCM is a very recent upgrade, it has not been put into use in any practices as yet, but Shelley told E-Health Insider that the SMS system had been internally and externally tested. "We are very confident about its viability," he said.

According to InPS, the system may also benefit practices by alerting patients to services such as post-natal clinics that will earn the practices extra funding under the new General Medical Services guidelines.

Max Brighton, managing director of InPS, said: "For many, mobiles are the preferred point of contact. One of the major aims of the NPfIT is the provision of an electronic booking service that will allow patients to book appointments at a time convenient to them. Patient care messaging is a valuable extention to this."

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Get a Bible Verse Daily on Your Cell Phone!

30/11/19

You can get a daily Bible verse on your cell phone totally free from SMS Media Group's mfaith service.

By subscribing to mfaith, you can now get a daily Bible verse on your cell phone totally free! Each text message is from the King James Version of the Bible, and has the verse location for further reference.

With virtually no advertising the service is spreading across North America via word of mouth. It doesn't matter who you are, everyone can relate to the Scriptures Mfaith sends. "Do not be misled: Bad company corrupts good character 1Cor 15:33;" or "It is to a man's honor to avoid strife, but every fool is quick to quarrel - Prov 20:3" are the types of messages subscribers receive.

Most all cell phones are capable of receiving 160 characters in a text message. Each mfaith message attempts to be within the 160 character limitations so that the entire verse can be included. Mfaith is one of many free text-messaging services offered by SMS Media Group. The service is deliverable to wireless carriers in the US and Canada including, AT&T, Cingular, T-Mobile and others.

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Schools put the word out on vacancies

30/11/19

SCHOOLS can text a teacher when they are short-staffed, under a ground-breaking new scheme.

Supply teachers throughout Fife are sent a text message or e-mail when a vacancy comes up.

More than 400 teachers have registered with the scheme, the first of its kind in Scotland.

Headteachers who need to cover absences can access the list and click on the teacher they want to contact.

A message detailing the school and length of placement is then automatically sent.

Fife’s 146 primary schools are using the system, with secondaries to start later this year.

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No SMS votes, we're Saudis

30/11/19

Saudi Arabia's main mobile phone operator has banned its customers from voting by text message in a hit reality television show because it fails to "match the values" of the conservative Muslim kingdom.

State-owned Saudi Telecommunications Company said it had blocked its 9.5 million mobile phone customers from texting votes for their favourite musical contestants on satellite show Star Academy 2.

"We feel the program does not match the values of the Saudi culture," said spokesman Saad Dhafer. "Our social and economic market research shows that our customers want us to operate in line with these values."

But Dhafer added viewers in the kingdom were still be able to vote using a regular land line.

In Star Academy 2, a group of young musicians from across the Arab world share a house and are filmed 24 hours a day as they compete for a recording contract.

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Insurance reminders to be sent via SMS

30/11/19

Bahrain residents could soon be getting insurance policy reminders via text messages direct to their mobile phones.

It follows a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between Bahrain-based Binser Software Technologies and ARIMA Insurance Software.

Insurance companies using the systems of ARIMA, which is the software subsidiary of the Arab Insurance Group (Arig), will be able to get policy expiry reminders, renewal reminders and other claim related information direct to their handset.

"The introduction of this feature integrated with the insurance software will obviously enhance companies' client relations as they will be able to advise them on renewals as well as new products," said ARIMA acting general manager Simon Cox.

ARIMA, also based in Bahrain, is described as a leading insurance and reinsurance software provider in the Middle East and Africa.

It has installations in Morocco, Egypt, Tunisia, Algeria, Nigeria, Kenya and Bahrain and is said to be holding discussions with other insurance companies in the region.

Binser's SMS product Messengex is now being used at over 160 organisations in the Gulf with installations in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Jordan, India, Nigeria and South Africa.

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More companies are using SMS for their promotions

30/11/19

The Philippines offers great potentials to push mobile marketing in Southeast Asia because Filipinos have developed a high degree of sophistication in terms of mobile-phone usage.

Arthur Policarpio, chief operating officer of Global Wireless Connections (GWC), said countries such as Indonesia and Thailand have already recognized the impact of mobile marketing.

"I believe that the Philippines can be the pioneer in Asia when it comes to mobile marketing", Policarpio said.

"We are the short messaging service (SMS) capital of the world and of Asia, and most of the mobile marketing concepts, models and products we have developed here have not yet been done outside the country", he said.

Mobile marketing is essentially the use of mobile-phone technology such as SMS, MMS and video streaming to build and promote brands and products. It covers the entire spectrum of current and future mobile-phone technology.

GWC is engaged in implementing end-to-end mobile marketing campaigns from concept development, software development, database management and securing of permits to marketing plan preparation and implementation, as well as logistics.

The company is looking to export its mobile marketing models this year to Indonesia, Thailand and Hong Kong as part of efforts to boost its presence in the Southeast Asian region. As far as Thailand is concerned, Policarpio said GWC is going to export Girl Text, a value-added service used by Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) subsidiary Smart Communications.

He said GWC is conducting talks with Indonesia-based Filipino entrepreneurs to finalize what projects could be brought to different Indonesian cities.

"We are also planning to enter the United States market after we have established our presence in Asia", he pointed out.

Policarpio allayed fears that mobile business has already reached its saturation point, citing the current subscriber growth rates posted by Smart and rival Globe Telecom, which indicate that there is still room for expansion.

"Many have said that Smart and Globe have reached subscriber penetration rate saturation point, but look at how they are beating analyst expectations", he said.

"We now have 30 million mobile-phone users in the country, and by end of next year, fully one out of two Filipinos are projected to have a mobile phone. In time, 70 percent to 80 percent of all Filipinos will have a mobile phone, by which time, the potential of mobile marketing will have reached its peak", he added.

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School has a textbook answer for staff absence

30/11/19

A NEW text-messaging service has been established for primary schools who need to find supply teachers to cover staff absences.

More than 400 supply teachers have registered with Fife Council to take part in the new initiative.

Schools can choose up to ten individuals they want to contact, and the electronic system will automatically trigger an e-mail or text message to be sent directly to the supply teacher.

The message will specify the name of the school, the length of the placement and give the school telephone number if the teacher wants want to take up the opportunity.

Fife Council resource leader Drew Edward admitted he was "amazed" at how quickly the service has been embraced by schools.

He said: "We’ve been aware of the difficulties that arranging supply teacher cover has given schools.

"Valuable staff time has been taken up with the need to call round long lists of supply teachers hoping to find someone at home to answer the call and come in to teach classes.

"Modern technology has given us a tool that can help with this task to ensure that teaching gaps will be filled swiftly.

"It will take away a major headache for schools which we’ve not been able to solve before."

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SMS political campaigning allowed

30/11/19

The Election Commission of Thailand (EC) has agreed to allow political parties to conduct their campaign through mobile phone messages or SMS.

EC had been asked by an SMS software developer, MDM I&C Co. whether sending SMS text messages urging Thais to vote for particular political parties were banned under the electoral law.

The EC has allowed SMS campaigning on the condition that the texts did not offer benefit in exchange for support, or defame other candidates or political parties, a commission source said.

The cost of the SMS texts will be counted as election campaign expenses, which are being strictly monitored by the EC.

Political SMS campaigning had been widely used in South Korean elections in the past, MDM I&C’s chief of marketing, Seung Ho Choi told TNA.

The company is now keen to see it used in Thailand.

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R U Ready? Donating via Cell Phone Emerges

30/11/19

The epic, heart-wrenching tragedy of the tsunami that struck eleven Asian countries last December has brought forth an equally epic response, as unprecedented levels of support continue to surprise relief agencies throughout the world. Individuals have been compelled to give, and have done so in a variety of ways, donating their money over the Internet, volunteering their time at non-profits inundated with an influx of checks, and hosting fundraisers at bars, restaurants, and clubs all over the country. Alongside these traditional methods of giving, a new means has emerged: donating through cell phones.

At least three U.S. phone companies, Verizon Wireless, All Tel, and Cingular Wireless, have offered their customers the ability to send text message donations to relief agencies assisting with the tsunami disaster. Whether this remains as a one-time opportunity or emerges as a new trend in fundraising remains to be seen.

Text messaging, sometimes known as SMS (for short messaging service), is a way of communicating short written messages over a wireless phone. According to Michael Pousti, CEO of SMS.ac, a mobile data communications company, approximately 14 billion text messages were sent domestically in 2003, and that number is expected to explode to 45 billion in 2005. This exponential growth (there were only 30,000 text messages sent domestically in June 2001), indicates that this is fast becoming one of the major communication tools in our culture.

And as with other major communication tools - letters, television, phone calls, and emails - text messaging has the potential to become a major tool for fundraising, even beyond the tsunami relief efforts.

In early January, Cingular Wireless sent a text to its subscribers, providing them the option of donating either $.99 or $1.99 to several different tsunami relief agencies by sending a simple message back. The charge will appear on their next phone bill, 100% of which will be donated to specific relief agencies.

Verizon Wireless and ALL TEL have implemented a similar program; through February 10th, customers with text messaging capability can send a message to 4CARE (42273) with the word “gift” in the message. They will receive a message asking them to confirm a donation of $5 to CARE, a leading organization assisting with tsunami relief efforts. To confirm the gift, they will reply with “yes” or “y.” This can be done up to five times, for a total possible contribution of $25 per customer to CARE.

According to Cingular Wireless spokesman Mark Siegel, donating through your cell phone “is a way to use a technology that’s really starting to take hold in the U.S. and really do good with it.”

The response to the tsunami tragedy could just be the beginning of a new type of fundraising; as online donating has now become commonplace, perhaps too will donating via text message.
A new nonprofit, the Wireless Giving Association, seeks to do just that. They have introduced Mobile Giving™, a new fundraising technique they hope will make it easy for individuals to donate to their favorite charities. They see Mobile Giving™ having the potential to be both event-driven (as in the tsunami-relief efforts) as well as Campaign-driven, allowing nonprofits to craft campaign messages for their constituents and update them on the progress at regular intervals. These opportunities would be opt-in, so that potential donors would not be turned off by unsolicited messages on their cell phones.
There is enormous potential for nonprofit organizations to partner with wireless phone companies as a means to provide another avenue for their constituents to give. In fact, given the huge popularity of text messaging with teenagers, it could become a way to involve younger generations in charitable giving.

It should be noted that it is too early to report how popular and effective donating through text messages has been - no numbers are available for how much money has been raised through the tsunami relief programs, nor how many people have participated, and there are currently no firm plans to expand this concept beyond the current humanitarian response. As Verizon Wireless’s Debi Lewis points out, “the technology is there. It remains to be seen how it will be applied going forward.”

The main drawback to text message donations is the relatively small increments currently available. Any meaningful fundraising effort would necessarily need to be large in scale, and people would have to get used to the concept of giving via their cell phones. However, the popularity of text messaging and the convenience of donating through this medium may create the right condition for this new trend to take off.

As Cingular’s Siegel points out, “text messaging is going to grow as a phenomenon exponentially as people realize how easy it is. Even people with gray hair like me are using it...it’s not just for the young, and it’s immensely useful in a variety of contexts.”

One of those contexts just may be fundraising.

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Verizon Wireless users can donate by text message

30/11/19

Verizon Wireless has teamed with CARE, a humanitarian organization, and is inviting customers to dial in donations.

Specifically, post-pay customers with phones capable of text messaging can contribute by dialing 4CARE (42273) and text message the keyword "gift."

Users will receive a reply message asking them to confirm a donation to CARE for $5. Customers will press the 9 key on their phone, corresponding to "Y" for "yes" and send that message.

The entire amount of each donation will be provided to CARE, to be used toward its earthquake and tsunami relief and recovery efforts.

Customers wishing to donate more than once can send up to four additional text messages to 4CARE, for a total contribution of $25.

Standard text messaging rates apply but Verizon will donate the fees to CARE as well. The message fees and donation will appear on the customer's next monthly bill.

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Health advice could be sent by text message

30/11/19

People with long-term conditions like asthma could soon be receiving health information by text message or email.

They could even pick up advice on how to stay fit and healthly from their local barber.

These are just some of the ways in which the NHS could be helping people take care of their own well-being, according to Health Secretary John Reid.

His new document examines ways to improve the lives of the millions of people who are affected by long-term conditions like diabetes that can't currently be cured - but are controlled by medicines and other therapies.

About 17 million people in the UK suffer from at least one long-term condition.

The guidance will also enable the NHS to improve the lifestyles of other people in the wider community, helping them to lead healthier lifestyles or take better care of minor ailments.

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Interchange Launches SMS LOCAL Wireless Local-Search and Nationwide Directory Assistance Beta

30/11/19

Interchange Corporation, a leading provider of local and national paid-search services, today launched its new SMS LOCAL(TM) wireless local-search beta. SMS LOCAL enables consumers to quickly and easily search for products, services and businesses by location using text-message (SMS) enabled mobile phones and devices.

Using the shortcode 56225 (L-0-C-A-L on most phones), SMS LOCAL provides fast access to millions of national and local U.S. business listings by product, service, business name, and location, including proximity to landmarks. SMS LOCAL returns listings containing business name, address, phone number and distance.

"SMS LOCAL is designed to allow wireless users to search for local businesses, products and services easily. It brings the power and flexibility of our proprietary Keyword DNA(TM) local-search technology directly to consumers via their text-message enabled mobile phone or device," said Heath Clarke, Interchange CEO. "This represents a strategic step in our mission to enable consumers and businesses to find and connect with each other -- anytime, anywhere.

Not only is SMS LOCAL much more flexible than current 411 directory assistance services, it represents a substantial cost saving to consumers each time they use it. Our goal is to make the easy to remember LOCAL shortcode as ubiquitous to SMS directory assistance in the future as 411 is today."

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Want to send 'vote for me' text messages

30/11/19

An SMS provider has asked the Election Commission whether sending short messages (SMS) urging mobile phone users to vote for certain parties or politicians is against the law.

Seung Ho Choi, chief marketing officer of MDM I&C Co, took staff to meet the Election Commission to ask whether the firm, an SMS provider, could provide the messages for a fee.

Mr Choi said the use of short messages for campaign activities was allowed in South Korea.

Wannipa Boonching, Mr Choi's secretary, said if the firm was allowed to go ahead, it would ask parties whether they were interested in sending SMS messages to woo voters.

The firm would offer the service for one baht to 1.40 baht per SMS per phone number. The more messages sent, the cheaper the service charge, she said. Normally, the service charge for an SMS is 3 baht a message.

"We can send messages to 1,000 mobile phone numbers a second. However, the speed depends on the amount of SMS traffic at the time.

We have heard that mobile-phone service operator DTAC will not provide the service as it wants to remain neutral while AIS, the country's largest cellular operator, wants to reserve the service for its customers. However, other mobile phone operators are ready to offer the service", she said.

An official at the Election Commission said parties or candidates could hire SMS providers to send messages.

However, the messages must not carry promises in exchange for votes, nor attack rival parties or candidates. Parties which hired firms to send messages must include the cost of the SMS service in their tally of campaign spending, said the official.

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Fighting oil disasters via SMS

30/11/19

Finnish ICT company Mermit Business Applications has donated an SMS alarm system to World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Finland.

In the case of an oil tanker disaster in the Baltic Sea region, WWF Finland can deliver information and action guidelines to more than 3 000 volunteers via SMS.

In the case of a disaster, an SMS is typed and then distributed to all the volunteers. “The SMS alarm system is a great way to improve the communication efficiency if an oil disaster happens," says Mermit's marketing director, Pietari Päivänen.

The messaging system is based on open source and Mermit Mobile Integration and Service Platform (MISP) technologies and Mermit will sponsor all the communication costs.

The system is intended to mobilise clean-up volunteers as quickly as possible to limit the damage caused by an oil spill. Päivänen notes: “We all remember the Prestige catastrophe in Spain, which killed 300 000 sea birds and cost 5 billion euros in cleanup and environmental damage.”

However, Päivänen is optimistic. “We sure hope they are not going to be needed this year – or ever actually,” he says.

“As Russia continues its expansion of oil transportation in the Baltic Sea, the need for special protection measures in one of the Earth's most vulnerable seas is imminent,” says Anita Mäkinen, head of WWF's Particularly Sensitive Seas Areas Baltic campaign.

WWF Finland is not the first non-profit organisation to benefit from Mermit MISP; others include YLE (Finland's national public service broadcasting company), the City of Helsinki and Sibelius Academy (a music university in Finland).

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SMS service in Tamil launched by MediaCorp Oli 96.8

30/11/19

It is now possible for one to SMS in Tamil.

The Tamil Messaging Service was launched on Saturday evening for the first time in the world.

The move was initiated by a Tamil Software company and MediaCorp's Oli 96.8 radio station.

Previously, the Tamil characters were sent as picture messages.

Now users can type the Tamil characters directly using the keypad.

To SMS in Tamil, users will need mobile phones with Mobile Internet Device Profile.

Most of the latest sets have this facility.

Oli 96.8 hopes its listeners will use this new service to participate in their programmes. - CNA

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Scamsters Now Targeting Local Gullibles Via SMS

30/11/19

The Philippine money scam is the latest now to hit the SMS network here in Brunei.

Besides being used even by a recent runaway bridegroom of a neighbouring country to ditch his bride in a last-minute escape stunt, this most popular, quick and cheap method of communication is now used to scam money out of the gullible.

When the Nigerian scam was thriving in the nineties, the modus operandi at the time was the ever-faithful facsimile.

Now the scamsters have set their traps to arrive with a beep straight into one's hand, in what seems to be a change in tactics to suit the 21st century.

The latest scam to arrive on a local mobile phone was a `congratulatory' message from 'Zandra Cepida'.

The message reads: "Congratulations! You are a lucky winner the last 4 digit of your mobile had won Jan 3, 2005. Call for more details (ZANDRA CEPIDA) 09162273013 or +639162273013."

One receiver, who was keen to find out what he had won, proceeded to call the number.

He was told by 'Zandra Cepida' that he had won B$650,000. However as all scams go, the glad tidings would never come free.

The individual was asked to deposit a `transaction fee' of B$1,000 to Account (No 317331703986) Allan Antiporda Metro Bank Bank Branch, General Santos City, Philippines before he could receive the supposed prize money.

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Harvest news by text message

30/11/19

Bacterial pollution from run-off into Whangaroa Harbour forced the drastic measure of a voluntary harvest closure for part of last year.

However, the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research has found a way to solve the problem - placing salinity detectors directly beside the oysters.
Oysters, like other filter feeders, reflect the condition of the water. If left alone when polluted, they will clean themselves as the water quality improves.

The key is to predict when it is safe to harvest. Water sample tests for bacteria can take 24 hours, by which time weather conditions may have changed and the results are meaningless.

Institute regional manager Ken Grange says that by necessity, most farmers rely on basic predictions.

"I think most of them have just got a rain gauge in their back yard and they just look at it 8 o'clock every morning and see how much rain there's been."

Unpredictable run-off channels, and the fact it can be raining in one part of Whangaroa Harbour but not the other, make this system unusable.

Previous attempts to use salinity buoys to measure salt levels, and thus identify when fresh water run-off hits the harbour, were also not accurate enough.

Bacteria-laden fresh water can sit on top of the salt water, contaminating the oysters as the tide goes out.

After nine months of rigorous sampling, during which time harvesting was greatly reduced, the institute decided salinity detectors worked.

Grange says it is now possible to accurately determine a safe time to harvest. To ensure timely disclosure of this information to farmers, the sensors return data 24 hours a day.

Farmers who previously received harvesting notices twice a day now receive them every 15 minutes via text messages and pagers.

Northland Health and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry have been satisfied with the results and Whangaroa Harbour has been conditionally approved for direct harvesting.

The system, costing less than $10,000 a year, is paid for by the farmers and run from the institute's Nelson office.

Grange says the technology will continue to be developed and does not have to be confined to New Zealand.

"We could run the same system in Australia or the United States."

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Texting travel on the buses

30/11/19

TECHNOLOGY allowing commuters to access train timetables on their mobile telephones through text messages soon also may be available to bus travellers.

More than 2000 commuters downloaded the Nomads on Track software to their phones to access timetables in a 12-month trial in Adelaide.

Because of the scheme's success the trial has been extended and there are plans for an expansion.

The software, which is free to download, provides information of any delays and disruptions to services.

Train commuter Peter O'Malley, 47, of Goodwood, said he used it regularly.

"At least once a week I catch the train so I use my mobile phone to find out times instead of carrying around a bulky timetable," he said.

"It is difficult to read big train timetables too, whereas with your phone you just scroll down and it shows you the next six services running."

The application, which is available on Java mobile telephones, was developed by Laborotech. Company managing director Stephen Kokk said he was happy with the scheme's popularity.

"Following our short trial here our contract has been extended and we are hoping the service will be available to bus commuters," he said. "We are hoping about 10,000 commuters will be using it within four years.

"Because this is such new technology we are surprised with how many people have already taken it up."

Office of Public Transport executive director Heather Webster was pleased commuters were using Nomads on Track.

"I think it is a very successful program and now we provide travel information on the internet, at the railway station, through timetable booklets and now by mobile phone," she said. "It is the most comprehensive form of a timetable."

Another Adelaide company is also trialling cutting edge commuter SMS (short message service) technology – but in Canberra.

Che Metcalfe, the founder of Adelaide's Kukan Studio, said an SMS timetable for bus commuters would be launched in Canberra in the next month.

Kukan's service works by typing in a departure and arrival location and the appropriate transport information is sent out.

"Each SMS is sent to the commuter for 55c, which is the lowest price possible," Mr Metcalfe said.

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International Sports and Media Group Completes Acquisition of www.ussocceruk.com

30/11/19

International Sports and Media Group (OTCBB:ISME) announced today that it has completed its transaction in the acquisition of www.ussocceruk.com.

ISME is in the process of launching the SmartSMS's Mobile Text Messaging platform to create and deploy premium Text Messaging services worldwide for the soccer industry starting with Text Messaging services for its recently acquired soccer website www.ussocceruk.com. The service, "Soccer Alert", will provide soccer enthusiast with instant gratification.

Gordon Lee, CEO, stated, "We are excited to announce to our shareholders that we have completed our most recent acquisition of www.ussocceruk.com as it is a very important element of our future growth. We have worked closely with the former ownership group of www.ussocceruk.com to further develop the site and continue to monetize the site. Our text messaging service will allow soccer fans worldwide to utilize their cell phones and receive up-to-the-minute news, scores and soccer trivia at the wink of an eye on any Mobil handset screen. We believe this service has tremendous potential and look forward to further business opportunities in the sports arena on the Internet and Mobil communications side."

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A Cure for Forgetfulness

30/11/19

An in-law's birthday celebration, a client meeting across town, an after-work dentist appointment and the kids' football practice...each day is brimming with activities and special occasions to remember.

Between longer work hours, deadlines and increased personal commitments, daily life has become more stressful as residents of the UK and EU struggle to maintain an organised schedule. To help manage busy lives, MemoText(TM), a comprehensive SMS reminder service for the whole family, launches in the UK and EU. With 70 per cent of people in the UK using mobile phones and over 2 billion text messages sent per month(i), MemoText is an unparalleled method of staying up to date on all important events and tasks...24-7!

MemoText.com is entirely unique. Whether a mum reminding herself or her two children of their after-school dentist appointment or a husband ensuring he picks up flowers on Valentine's Day, MemoText allows the user to send themselves and others mobile phone text messages at scheduled dates and times.

Using a simple web application for subscribers to pre-set text message reminders from a MemoText.com account, the mum can set up an appointment reminder message for her kids to receive on their cell phones prior to the end of school, while the husband can set up the text message weeks in advance to be received at a pre-determined interval such as a day before an anniversary dinner.

MemoText allows subscribers to create a personal profile and add an unlimited amount of mobile phone numbers to that list. Using the MemoText calendar system, users set up non-repeating or repeating messages to any mobile phone in the world. Daily, weekly, monthly or yearly appointments can be arranged and more than one person at a time can receive reminders. For a limited time, new users who signup with MemoText will receive the current month free.

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Smart Claims a First for Text Message Response System to TV Advertising

30/11/19

DaimlerChrysler's Smart claims to be the first car manufacturer in the UK, and possibly the world, to use SMS responses in its TV advertising, allowing viewers to arrange test drives, request brochures or locate dealers by sending text messages from their mobile phones.

"Smart UK is using SMS response for its latest TV advertising campaign for the ForFour. Consumers text 'Join in' to an on-screen five-digit number to request a test drive. They then text their name, house number and postcode to receive details of their nearest dealer, and can request a brochure and a phone call to arrange the test drive. TXT 4 said new research indicates that SMS is consumers’ preferred method of responding to TV advertising, as it takes seconds and does not interrupt viewing."

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Biz listing fee can be texted

30/11/19

Beating the deadline of January 31 for the annual registration of businesses is now just as easy as texting or sending a cellular load credit to someone.

This is because the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), the Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP), Globe Telecom, and G-Exchange Inc. launched on Wednesday the system that is first in the world, enabling taxpayers to pay by telephone text message.

This is expected to immediately cut the long queues at registrar’s offices.

Assistant Revenue Commissioner Lilia Guillermo said this is the first tax payments system using text in the whole world. “Being the text capital of the world, we have thought of a more convenient use of this (text messaging) so that businesses here in the country won’t forget to register their business annually, which usually happens.”

Guillermo said that if their pilot system succeeds, they will adopt this system through the Philippines for all other tax payments. The system would be able to accept tax payments not exceeding P10,000.

She said the IT team of LandBank and Globe “conceptualized the project, hastened it over the holidays, and made possible the launch in less than three weeks to be able to beat our deadline.”

At the launch were LandBank president Gary Tevez, G-exchange Inc. president Jose Roberto Mendoza and Delfin Gonzalez of Globe Telecom.

Guillermo said, “If there are no hitches, we will be able to assess the system after January 31, when all the payments are in.”

She added, “This mobile system renders an effective and efficient service to the taxpayer, and unburden the BIR from handling paper work and encoding data.”

The few simple steps to do this is to first register one’s cellphone with Globe G-cash by keying in your handset REG 4-digit pin no./mother’s maiden name/ first name/last name/address/landline number and send to 2882.

For example: REG 1234/Evangelista/Mercedes/ Rullan/55 Paseo de Roxas Street, Makati City/ 09178131081 then send to 2882.

After registering, the taxpayer will receive a confirmation that he is now registered with the Globe G-cash and can now avail himself of the services.

Once the transaction is complete, the taxpayer will receive a confirmation message and trace number to make inquiries with the BIR if needed.

Each transaction message costs P1.00. One can call 2882 or 981-8888, which is the BIR hotline for other inquiries.

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Text message record smashed again

30/11/19

Taken from BBC News, text messaging shows no sign of a slowdown.

UK mobile owners continue to break records with their text messaging, with latest figures showing that 26 billion texts were sent in total in 2004.
The figures collected by the Mobile Data Association (MDA) showed that 2.4 billion were fired off in December alone, the highest monthly total ever.

That was 26% more than in December 2003. The records even surpassed the MDA's own predictions, it said.

Every day 78 million messages are sent and there are no signs of a slow down.

Before December's bumper text record, the previous highest monthly total was in October 2004, when 2.3 billion were sent.

Text messaging is set to smash more records in 2005 too, said the MDA, with forecasts suggesting a total of 30 billion for the year.

More mobiles, more texts

Even though mobiles are becoming increasingly sophisticated with much more multimedia applications, texting is still one of the most useful functions of mobiles.

People are using SMS to do much more too. Booking cinema tickets, text voting, and news or sports text alerts are growing popular.

Mobile owners have also given the chance to donate to the Disasters Emergency Committee's (DEC) Asian Tsunami fund by texting "Donate" to a simple short code number.

Looking further ahead in the year, the MDA's chairman Mike Short, has predicted that more people will go online through their mobiles, estimating 15 billion WAP page impressions.

Handsets with GPRS capability - an "always on" net connection - will rise to 75%, while 3G mobile ownership growing to five million by the end of 2005.

These third generation mobiles offer a high-speed connection which means more data like video can be received on the phone.

Globally, mobile phone sales passed 167 million in the third quarter of 2004, according to a recent report from analysts Gartner.

That was 26% more than the previous year. It is predicted that there would be two billion handsets in use worldwide by the end of 2005.

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Free drinks via text message

30/11/19

UK mobile marketing firm I-movo and wi-fi-enabled terminal network Inspired have announced the launch of a drink-voucher SMS marketing scheme.

The companies have announced an agreement between them that will involve the sending of text message coupons for complimentary drinks to consumers, who can then redeem them by tapping in a code in the text message and then printing out a paper version of the voucher from an 'Itbox', one of Inspired's entertainment and gaming terminals already installed in 12,000 pubs throughout the UK. The paper voucher is then exchanged at the bar for a drink, without cash ever changing hands.

The companies are hoping various drinks companies, or other interested parties, will deploy the service as part of SMS-based advertising campaigns.

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SMS tsunami donations reach £1m

30/11/19

British mobile phone users have donated over £1m to the Disasters Emergency Committee tsunami appeal fund using text messages.

After the disaster 3, Fresh, O2, Orange, T-Mobile, Tesco Mobile, Virgin Mobile and Vodafone clubbed together to provide a single, no-fee text number to accept donations.

By texting DONATE to 83321 £1.50 is automatically deducted from the phone bill and goes straight to DEC.

"Text has proven to be a straightforward and accessible way to demonstrate support for tsunami aid relief, and we are immensely grateful for this huge effort by a new group of donors," said Brendon Gormley, chief executive at DEC.

Customers of all the networks can donate via the 83321 shortcode until 31 March 2005.

Text messaging is increasingly being used to raise money for charities. The GSM Association will be holding a text message auction in February to raise money for Unicef.

Participants will text in bids for prizes including VIP trips to the Cannes Film Festival or the British Grand Prix. Winners will be announced at the end of the 3GSM World Congress.

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International Sports and Media Group Signs Marketing Agreement with United States Basketball League

30/11/19

International Sports and Media Group, Inc. announced it has entered into a marketing/sales agreement with the United States Basketball League, one of the oldest and well-recognized basketball leagues in the United States. ISME signed a two-year renewable contract to market, sell advertising, and sell USBL franchises for the league via various forms of premium SMS Text Messaging and other loyalty programs that will generate increased cash flow for the league and its member teams.

The agreement allows ISME to spearhead a new marketing campaign for the USBL utilizing the SMS Text Messaging technology. The USBL has thousands of fans with each of their franchises. ISME will continue to target various sports and entertainment brands creating a truly unique sports and media marketing campaign consisting of contests, late breaking news, trades and scores along with voting polls and trivia showdowns. This will all be done from fans cell phones both at the game and from anywhere on your cell phone, while at the same time, creating and maintaining a database of loyal fans for the league.

Gordon Lee, Chairman and CEO of International Sports and Media Group, Inc., stated, "We recently announced the availability of our SMS Text Messaging services for the Soccer arena and believe that with the hundreds of thousands of fans of the United States Basketball League (USBL), an exciting campaign will be duplicated with the latest SMS Text Messaging technology which in turn will translate to added top line revenue growth for ISME and the USBL. This is the second SMS Text messaging campaign we have announced in the last 30 days or so which includes our 'Soccer Alert', Text Messaging service which is now being deployed on our wholly-owned Soccer website, www.ussocceruk.com. We are very excited that we have taken the SMS Text Messaging Sports and Media marketing service now into a commercial form, diversifying into different sport markets, and will continue to aggressively pursue all avenues in the Sports and Media sector. We look forward to the continued growth of customers and clients for ISME and its shareholders in the coming quarters as we continue to move forward with our SMS Text Messaging Sports and Media marketing campaign."

Daniel T. Meisenheimer, III, Chairman and Commissioner of the USBL, stated, "We are very excited to be working with ISME. This unique marketing agreement allows us to further monetize our marketing efforts for our league and franchises. This partnership enhances our fan loyalty while creating a powerful advertising method for our current and future advertisers. It truly is a win-win situation for everyone as we are very excited about the future prospects of the capabilities of SMS Text Messaging Sports and Media marketing services for our league, our fans and shareholders. We are looking forward to developing new verticals for marketing with ISME."

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Yahoo Begins Send Search Results via SMS

30/11/19

Starting today, Yahoo! Local is the first major site to offer users the ability to quickly and easily send their search results from their PC directly to their smartphone or mobile device.

This new service is freely available across all the major US wireless carriers - Cingular/AT&T Wireless, Verizon, Sprint/Nextel and T-Mobile - excluding carrier SMS fees.

Consumers can now click to send a text message with the business name, phone number, address and cross-street of their Yahoo! Local search results directly to their SMS enabled phone. Many consumers will even be able to call the business number directly from the text message. This new ability builds upon the successful launch of Yahoo! Search for Mobile and Yahoo! Local for Mobile across several major US carriers late last year.

By implementing this service via text messaging, the most widely used data application with more than 70% penetration across carriers (Telephia, 8/04), and simultaneously launching across all the major carriers Yahoo! has cast the broadest net possible to make it easy for millions of consumers to take their search results with them on the go. This launch supports Yahoo!'s focus on extending its key services beyond the desktop – letting consumers take Yahoo! with them on the go. Yahoo! is the No. 1 Internet destination worldwide, the top website accessed via the wireless internet (Telephia, 8/04) and the No. 1 destination for people looking for local information online (NNR).

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Stop eating chips. You have heartburn

30/11/19

"Stop eating chips. You have heartburn," reads an SMS sent by a South African doctor to a worried patient at a rugby Test match in Ireland.

This diagnosis was possible thanks to new technology, which is expected to slash visits to doctors by up to 60%.

All it takes is a device about the size of a credit card, which enables a patient to do his own ECG when he suddenly develops chest pains.

Dr Darian van Loggerenberg, managing director of BHD Imports Africa, who imports the gadget from Germany, says the device has been available in South Africa since October.

The device, when held against the chest, does an instant ECG.

Once the ECG is done, the patient dials a number that links the device to a software programme in his doctor's office. The ECG data is automatically sent via e-mail or fax to the doctor, and reaches him within minutes along with an SMS voice message from his patient.

Van Loggerenberg said the system costs about R5 500 and is sold to doctors, who pay a service fee of about R350 a month.

At least 14 doctors around the country are already using it. They rent out the ECG meter to patients, and some medical schemes are already willing to pay for the cost.

Van Loggerenberg said about 15 000 doctors in Germany are linked to the system. The system has only one line and is mainly used to pick up changes in the heart's rhythm.

Van Loggerenberg said the system is not as effective as a conventional ECG machine as it cannot diagnose all heart diseases.

But it allows patients, who have symptoms such as palpitations, dizziness and tiredness, to do an ECG without rushing to the doctor.

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Super Bowl to include MVP vote via text message

30/11/19

Mobile publisher THQ Wireless Inc. said it will allow football fans to vote for a most valuable player during the Super Bowl broadcast Feb. 6.

THQ is teaming with Players Inc., the licensing arm of the NFL Players Association, to encourage spectators to tout their choices via text messaging. Announcers during the broadcast will tout the promotion.

"Wireless is one of the most innovative new technologies to come along that has really allowed fans to get the NFL experience from anywhere at any time," said LaShun Lawson of Players Inc. "Whether at home or at a Super Bowl party, fans can make a difference by voting for the best player on the field on football's biggest day of the year."

Meanwhile, Sprint PCS said it will offer voice tones, text alerts and screen savers featuring golf pro Tiger Woods to its Vision subscribers. Sprint unveiled a two-year deal making the carrier the sole provider of TigerWoods.com content for mobile phones in the United States.

The offerings will include EA Sports Tiger Woods 2005, a mobile game already available to Sprint Vision customers. Content will range in price from $2 to $6.50.

"Sprint PCS Vision gives everyone an opportunity to customize their phones with everything from games, photos and screen savers to this new content from TigerWoods.com," said Jeff Hallock, Sprint's vice president of product marketing and strategy. "This is yet another illustration of how Sprint leads the industry in wireless data applications and content."

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Text-Messaging : Marketers' Choice

30/11/19

About 23 billion text messages were transmitted over mobile phones in the U.S. last year, according to Jupiter Research. Alex Campbell had something to do with more than a few of them in the Chicago area.

Campbell, chief executive of Evanston-based Vibes Media (www.vibes.com), organizes marketing events around text messages for large companies.

For example, Vibes put up survey questions on the scoreboard at every White Sox home game last season. Participants in the ballpark--and those watching on TV--were directed to respond via their cell phone with a text message.

"One of the questions was who is the most attractive player on the White Sox," Campbell recalled.

Who won?

"Magglio [Ordonez] kind of ran away with it."

There were usually between 500 and 700 responses. ("But participation would go way up when there was a rain delay.")

Vibes' client in the program was U.S. Cellular, and for the company "it was a chance to get consumers to their brand," Campbell said.

No longer a specialty communications method for teens, wireless phone-based text messaging is gaining acceptance as a mainstream marketing tool. Activities are interactive where cell phone owners are prompted to participate.

Vibes ran another program, this one for Schaumburg-based Motorola, where "anyone walking by the Motorola billboard in Times Square in New York could sent a text message and have it appear on the billboard," Campbell said.

"All of a sudden people realized they could take a photo of the billboard and say `I love you' to somebody. So we'd get four, five messages per person. We had a couple hundred messages per day."

Of course, an automatic filter is used to monitor messages for language before they're posted for public display.

At a recent John Mayer concert at Tinley Park's Tweeter Center, Vibes received 5,300 text messages in 25 minutes for display on a big screen.

"It's a little bit different than e-mail," Campbell said. "The wireless world is controlled by four major carriers, and they're watching their networks [compared to many thousands of online e-mail providers]. They can see where messages are coming from."

Other than contests and surveys, what can consumers do with the text-messaging function on their cell phone?

"The No. 1 thing to do is communicate," said Campbell. "Ninety-nine percent of the traffic is people talking with friends and family. You can send a message to a group [like with e-mail] without having to call each person in that group."

But there are services popping around text messaging. And even though they're in an infancy stage, they can be useful.

For example, Google SMS (www.google.com/sms) lets you send a text inquiry like "pizza 60601" and it will return the closest pizza joint in that ZIP code. Type "price ipod 20GB 60069" and Google will return the best price in your area.

Messages to Google SMS should be sent to the number 46645, which spells GOOGL on most phone keypads.

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Daily tips on Vasthu Sastra via SMS

30/11/19

Cuts, extensions, depressions and elevations in a plot or a house can have positive or negative impact on the occupants.

It is vital that dwellers are aware of these afflictions because they can hurt the prosperity, health and peace of mind of those living in such properties.

Starting tomorrow, Malaysia's newspaper "The Star" will provide daily tips on the effects of such faults and how to remedy them. The tips will be provided by StarMag’s Vasthu Sastra columnist T. Selva.

Selva’s tips will include the auspicious location for a fountain, swimming pool or a water feature, how to correct plot extensions, cuts, depressions, unfavourable surroundings and how to create a harmonious living space in a property.

To subscribe to the short messaging service, type VS ON and send to 32321.

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"Freedom" - dynamic mobile services in Qatar

30/11/19

Info2cell has tied up with Qtel to launch 'Freedom'. The service supports Text alerts and SMS messages in both Arabic and English languages. The Mobile Portal itself is currently in English but will soon be available in Arabic as well.

The extensive portfolio of services available on the mobile portal includes Breaking News, Business Headlines, Horoscope, Jokes, Entertainment and Sports Headlines via SMS, and also services to personalise the mobile phone like Ring-Tones, Picture Messages and Operator Logos.

Speaking on the launch of the new service, Sheikh Fahad Bin Jassim Al-Thani, Acting Executive Director, Wireless Services, Qtel explained: 'Qtel is aiming to become a leading service provider in the region. We are driven by the needs of our customers and are focusing on offering innovative value-added services to these customers. Driven by the growing trend to use the mobile phone as a personal information management system, the new portal extends the mobile phone's usefulness from being just a communication device to also being a news and information provider and a means of entertainment. By offering this service, we will ensure that our customers stay up-to-date with news and events as they occur across the region, as well as being able to personalize their mobiles with the latest Ring-Tones and Picture Messages'.

The new portal is expected to jazz up the mobile phone scene in Qatar, by delivering a wide range of dynamic and innovative services. The service targets the 400,0000-plus Mobile customers in Qatar, especially those in the 18-35 age-group.

The new website, www.freedom.com.qa is fully customizable and has an efficient site navigation system which means that customers can view the information they need, wherever they are.

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An Insight into the United States Mobile Marketing and Short Code SMS Markets

30/11/19

New analysis from Frost and Sullivan, reveals that revenue in the mobile marketing market totaled 11.5 million dollars in 2004 and projects to reach 69.3 dollars million in 2007.

To further enhance customer response, mobile marketing companies must work toward achieving greater synchronization in a comparatively extended value chain that includes advertisers, platform providers, connection aggregators, and mobile operators.

Absences of coordination and mismanaged relationships have been long-standing bottlenecks, intensified by the lack of a central aggregator for mobile operators. The plurality of mobile operators and their individual rules and regulations slow down mobile marketing campaigns.

“Although marketers reserve short codes from the Cellular Telecommunications and Internet Association (CTIA), they still have to contact each mobile operator and short messaging service (SMS) aggregator for connectivity,” explains Frost & Sullivan Industry Analyst Vikrant Gandhi.

Marketers also must ensure that each mobile operator participates in the campaign, where each one has a different set of rules and regulations about the suitability of content for subscribers.

In addition, as network speeds increase, there is mounting pressure for better coordination between mobile operators, application developers, and brands. This is esential if the entire value chain is to benefit.

The lack of flexibility among participants in the value chain also stalls decisions on suitable revenue shares in a campaign. Since revenue from mobile marketing campaigns expects to rise with more advertisers utilizing this medium, participants must resolve this issue.

“The mobile operators bill the campaign-related messages successfully delivered, retain a share, and pass the rest to connection aggregators. They, in turn, keep their share and forward the remaining to the next level of the value chain,” observes Gandhi. “The revenue flow may actually vary as in some cases, the brand owners pay the mobile operators for banners and interstitials, while in other instances, the mobile operators pay revenue share to the brand owners for text messaging-based campaigns.”

As companies outside the telecom and entertainment arena also adopt mobile channels as marketing mediums, there has been an increased flow of revenue. This upswing has led to the establishment of companies that specifically produce mobile marketing campaigns. With a large pool of mobile users, these campaigns have the potential to accelerate user adoption.

Besides mobile operators, specialized companies can assist in disseminating accurate information on interactive mobile marketing, as the popularity of text messaging is providing lucrative opportunities.

These trends toward a ‘one-stop shop’ are likely to boost customer interactivity and maximize brand awareness.

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Emap launches gig alert service

30/11/19

Magazine publisher Emap has announced that its ticketing service, Aloud.com, is launching an SMS gig alert service, giving customers the dates and sales times of live music performances via their mobiles.

Customers can now sign up for SMS alerts to coincide with actual on sale times and dates in addition to the regular ‘forthcoming events’ emails which Aloud sends to subscribers every week.

Both the SMS and email service allow customers to choose the musical genres on which to receive information, including rock, urban, indie, pop and “legends”.

As soon as tickets are about to go on sale for an artist in the chosen genre, subscribers will receive a message. They can then book instantly, by calling the Aloud booking number, or log on to www.aloud.com.

This differs from other operators’ services which only offer SMS alerts on a "tickets will be available on..." basis.

Gigi Dryer, Emap Performance’s head of ticketing and co-promotions, said: “It’s really frustrating to only discover your favourite band is in town once the gig has sold out. By subscribing to both Aloud’s email newsletters and our new SMS alert, music fans should be able to stay ahead of the game.”

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Triple savings for owner on new SMS payment system

30/11/19

Using MoPay, the South African mobile payment system which allows you to receive credit and debit card payments from your cellphone, has saved Craig Bouwer's small Sedgefield business solutions company three times what he would have paid had he installed a normal Speedpoint system.

"It's very cost-effective, quick and easy to use," says Bouwer.
MoPay costs R200 a month to rent plus a 5% commission on each transaction a lot more affordable than renting a Speedpoint which can come to between R600 and R1 000 a month, says Bouwer.

He runs Aztec, a company that specialises in supplying and leasing office equipment mainly to clients in the Garden Route area - mostly restaurants and bed-and-breakfasts.

He says he has been using MoPay for three months and mostly uses it for his clients to make debit or credit payments to him. He has three employees and has been operating since 2002.

Bouwer is looking forward to using MoPay's new SMS cheque method, which allows business owners to receive and make cheque payments from a cellphone.

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