Global New Year SMS up 30 per cent

The global volume of text messages sent to celebrate the New Year rose by a third this year, according to new figures from LogicaCMG.

The company, which claims to handle more than half the text messages sent worldwide, said that 18 billion messages were sent on the last day of 2006.

In the UK the number was up 29 per cent, but growth in some emerging markets, such as Thailand, was up over 50 per cent. 

"This New Year demonstrated that, far from reaching an end, SMS and mobility remain a key part of tomorrow's lifestyle," said Henk de Boer, senior vice president for messaging at LogicaCMG.

"The double-digit growth of global SMS proves that its relevance in the lives of people is stronger than ever.

"Mobile users are able to rely on the ability of SMS to guarantee real-time delivery of personal messages to businesses, friends and family at critical moments."

There are currently two billion active SMS users on the planet, making it the world's most popular messaging system.

LogicaCMG expects further growth, particularly in MMS messages now that interoperability problems have been largely resolved.

• Brits sent 214m texts on New Year's Day