Citizens to be informed on road closures by SMS - Azerbaijan

The Cabinet has approved the rules.

The Cabinet has approved the "Rules of SMS-information about the temporary closure of roads and other activities in this area."

Oxu.Az reports that, according to the rules, the information about the temporary closure of roads and other activities in this area through short messages (SMS) will be implemented by the Ministry of Transport with the help of cellular (mobile) telecom operators.

Messages will be sent to users by the Intelligent Transport Management Center. The volume of a short message will be determined in line with the requirements of GSM-standard.

Services will be provided in electronic form. Information will be available through subscription services or sending SMS-request. Services will be provided for a fee. Monthly fee and the cost of one SMS will be determined in line with the agreement signed between the Ministry of Transport and cellular (mobile) telecom operators.

The proceeds will be stored on the current account of the Intelligent Transport Management Center of the Ministry of Transport.

Source: By news.Az on 9th Dec 2014

Pakistan - SMSs make electioneering more robust in country

Mobile phone operators in the country cashed the boom and enthusiasm of voters during elections 2013 campaign and generated revenues as SMS traffic went up to one billion text messages per day.

Thousands of candidates in the country made full use of the modern communication facilities and continuously tried to convince voters in their constituencies through text messages.

According to rough figures, one billion short messages (SMS) were exchanged on a daily basis in the country when the election was drawing nearer. 

“A huge rise in the usage of SMS was observed and not only the political parties used the SMS, but their supporters also exchanged a lot of SMS. Subscribers in Pakistan usually spend about a billion rupees a month on SMS,” said an official from a mobile service provider.

This increase in revenue is not only good for mobile companies but the medium used for campaigning is also very effective as there are 120 million mobile phone users in Pakistan.

Mobile phone companies also used Election 2013 as an opportunity and promoted different offers for their users. The subscribers were able to get all the information through text messages. 

Pakistan is one of the countries where per user SMS ratio is quite high. A general user generates 176 SMS per month in Pakistan. In China this number is 99 SMS per month, for India this figure is 53 per month, in USA this figure is 617 and in Brazil this figure is 22 SMS per month.

Source: By dailytimes.com.pk on 13th May 2013

Tanzania: Sh300 Million Daily SMS Craze

The short messaging service (SMS) craze has gripped mobile phone users in the country, whose nimble fingers are generating a whopping Sh300 million in revenue for the mobile phone companies every day.

With more people owning the increasingly affordable handsets, the traffic has surged to a record 5.1 million text messages daily, and this helped largely by the general belief among the subscribers that it's cheaper to text than to make a call.

Source: By allafrica.com on 19th June 2013