Orange and Twitter partner on mobile tweets

The new service will speed access for tweeters on the move

Twitter users will soon be able to send messages and photographs directly from an Orange mobile phone, speeding up the process and potentially improving productivity.

Orange claims to be the first mobile operator to offer the ability to send and receive Twitter messages via SMS and MMS. Importantly, the partnership removes the need for Orange users to download third-party software, or pay to receive text-based tweets.

Sending or uploading a tweet will be charged at the operator's standard text message rate.

"We have seen over the last year how Twitter is transforming the dynamics of real-time search and breaking news," said Mark Watts Jones, head of product management at Orange UK.

"So we are delighted to extend the value of the service by bringing it to mobile, enabling our customers to view and update their Twitter streams and giving them the unique ability to upload photos directly via MMS."

Photos will be directly uploaded to Orange's Snapshot site, letting the user send a link to their followers rather than a large file.

Other social networking-like activity can be managed centrally through the Orange World portal, which also offers access to Facebook, MySpace and Bebo.