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Originally Posted by Dravyk
Ok, serious question for "the rest of the world" outside of North America ...
SMS -- Why?
In the US we just phone the other person on our cells and talk. Sometimes we use the walkie-talkie feature.
Why text when you can talk?
Is it possible -- and I do not know, that's why I am asking -- that the US phone prices are cheaper than elsewhere?
Just as Other Steve said people texting everywhere. You walk down the street here and everyone is walking down the pavement with a cell to their ear. Get on a bus and there's usually three people on it talking. Hell, if I have to wait at the pharmacy 15 minutes for a prescription pickup I usually end up having a chat.
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there is no "walkie talkie" feature in the rest of the world. Most countries have one primary standard... GSM. in the US, you have 10 big companies with their own standards trying to dominate the market with thier own standard, which is probably a primary reason that it takes a long time for a particular technology to catch on.
The US has ALWAYS been far behind the curve in this area in both trends and technology. This has been true since mobile phones were invented... the US has lagged behind. Ring tone sites were making millions in Europe in the mid-late 90's before people in the US even heard of a ring tone. Today, you can turn on MTV in almost any european country and there are more commercials for shit like Ring tones, sms chat lines/dating and other crap than real products. In some countries, MTV or any music channel plays a video and at the bottom of the screen, there is a number to call to get the ringtone, sms to vote on the song etc etc.
SMS is cheaper usually to send a quick message and Europe does not typically have cell plans like the US where you can get a gazillion minutes for almost nothing. and SMS message usually costs a fixed amount like .05/message, whereas a quick phone call in Russia for example to say the same thing would cost a 1.00 or more - it is important to people who make very little money. if you are the typical chatty teen, that is a lot of money every month.