▲ 4 points

Ask HN: It's 2018 – why aren't all text messages delivered over the internet?

by dkobran·8y ago·3 comments·view on hn ↗

Outside of iMessage and Google's RCS, SMS messaging feels like something out of the stone ages (okay, 1990's) eg very small text size limits, reliance on cell connectivity etc. I was recently in rural Massachusetts where I happened to have WiFi but very poor cell reception. I could receive messages from my friends with iPhones but not reliably from anyone else. I realize this sort of scenario will become less common but just curious about why this is still a problem? I'm surprised to see WiFi calling beat messaging here (I've seen WiFi calling as an option on both Android and iPhones for a while now).

3 comments

Telecoms standards are slow to be defined and slow to be adopted. There would need to be a standard defined for this but there would also need to be an incentive ($$$) to implement it.

In today's mobile networks P2P (person to person) SMS is decreasing due to Whatsapp, iMessage, etc. and A2P (application to person) SMS is increasing. In the future it is suspected that majority of SMS will be A2P. A2P has more value (e.g. Facebook wanting to deliver a two factor auth code to you) so it makes sense that operators are currently focusing on monetising this.

Also, a lot of countries block Over The Top (OTT) messaging (i.e. iMessage, Whatsapp, etc.) so for some countries (and businesses) SMS is still the most reliable text delivery format.

First time I've even heard of RCS. I see a few news articles from Jan/Feb '17, which brought on some new carriers, but nothing major, and nothing in USA.

Having just switched from iPhone to Pixel 2, I still cannot get over not having iMessage a month in. The third party apps that let you text from your computer are pretty bad.

Travel to rural or out of the way places in the US and you will see why. Internet is not as common as you think. Also, at large events (sports, conventions, concerts) Internet can be next to impossible, but TXT messages get through.