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Free MMS/SMS - Caveat Mendicaus

  • 24-01-2003 1:41pm
    #1
    The Corinthian
    Closed Accounts Posts: 19,777 ✭✭✭✭


    The topic of free SMS providers is an old one here, but given that the technology has evolved and free MMS is now avidly being sought, I thought I should warn people here of the dangers of accepting a free lunch...

    I would be weary of giving out my (or anyone else’s) mobile number to so-called free SMS or MMS services. MMS involves a combination of WAP and SMS (two of them if the transaction requires delivery confirmation), and SMS invariably will cost the free service provider money. In short, other than in the case of a number of networks in the US and Canada SMS is never free - someone always pays.

    So, whatever about supplying a free service that doesn’t cost you anything (other than one’s time and some bandwidth), giving away free SMS’s would appear to be too generous, too good to be true.

    Breaking news - it is.

    Many, if not most services are designed to act as honey pots for the collection of mobile numbers, that can later be used for marketing purposes. Which is all well and good if you’re not bothered about getting SMS Spam - after all, doesn’t cost you anything.

    Not quite. With the introduction of MMS, that SMS Spam may well be a WAP-Push instruction to go to a URL (this is in essence what MMS is) and download the marketing media over GPRS. And byte for byte, you will be paying for that Spam.

    Now imagine a 40Kb Spam MMS being sent to your phone every day. Imagine that it doesn’t identify itself as an advertisement and all you have to rely upon is your phone’s software to block it...

    As such I would recommend people do the following:
    • Read the Terms of Service to any such Free service.
    • If it looks too good to be true, it probably is.
    • Use service providers that are known and reputable (such as the Free SMS offered by the mobile operators).
    • If you have an MMS capable phone, set it to demand user confirmation before downloading MMS content (assuming your phone is capable of such a setting).
    • Pay for your SMS/MMS - you skinflint :p


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