[Link9228]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Short_message_service

SMS as used on modern handsets was originally defined as part of the GSM series of standards in 1985[1] as a means of sending messages of up to 160 characters (including spaces), to and from GSM mobile handsets.[2] Since then, support for the service has expanded to include other mobile technologies such as ANSI CDMA networks and Digital AMPS, as well as satellite and landline networks.[citation needed] Most SMS messages are mobile-to-mobile text messages, though the standard supports other types of broadcast messaging as well.