UAE | General

Philippines leads the world in getting message across

Text messaging is one of those methods of electronic communication that is credited with the advent of a communication phenomenon referred to by experts as Computer Mediated Communication (CMC).

  • By Adam Flinter, Web Editor
  • Published: 01:02 May 23, 2008
  • Gulf News

  • Neil, a Filipino electrical designer, says he uses short text language to shorten the message because sending texts to the Philippines is expensive.
  • Image Credit: Gulf News
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Dubai: Text messaging is one of those methods of electronic communication that is credited with the advent of a communication phenomenon referred to by experts as Computer Mediated Communication (CMC).

In many countries, text messaging has become so popular that it has led to a whole set of terms and shortcuts which will look like jargon to those who are not familiar with text messaging. One of those countries is the Philippines.

The Philippines is the undisputed text messaging capital of the world.

Statistics from 2006 show that 400 million SMS messages were sent in the country, although that figure will probably have more than doubled in the time since.

Anecdote

After all, the Philippines tops the world average with around 15 messages sent per subscriber per day.

That's way ahead of the likes of the UK which in 2006 could only boast around 6 per person on a daily basis.

It's no understatement to say that SMS is firmly engrained in the modern culture of the Philippines.

A recent anecdote from a Filipino colleague, in which he recounted a story of a waiter in an upmarket restaurant in Manila sending a text while taking an order, only serves to re-enforce the image of a text crazy country.

There are now dictionaries to help with the now ubiquitous vowel free vocabulary, you can file your income tax over text and there is an SMS remittance service which allows people to send and receive money in fast food restaurants.

In fact the love for the format is so great that the Philippines became the first country in the world which income from text messaging surpassed that of voice calls.

Resourceful telecoms providers in the country have even introduced voice call sharing tariffs in which mobile subscribers can give unused talk time to friends and relatives.

Texts have even played a significant part in the shaping of the political sphere.

The humble SMS is largely credited with a major role in the people power coup of 2000 in which the president Joseph 'Erap' Estrada was overthrown.

Hoax

SMS messages directed 700,000 demonstrators to Manila's People Power shrine to demand his resignation. A few years later, one of the big stories in the 2004 presidential election came in the form of a hoax SMS that was sent around the country claiming that the president Gloria Arroyo was fleeing the country.

But why is it that SMS has taken off so much in the Philippines? Partly it's because of cost. it is far cheaper to send a text than to make a voice call.

It is also down to reliability and convenience in a country where telephone connections are not always guaranteed.

But the price advantage could be about to come to an end.

At the beginning of 2008, the Philippines Trade Secretary, Peter Favila has proposed adding a tax on SMS text messages. The unsurprisingly unpopular proposal would be designed to help offset losses from proposals to end the 12 per cent tax on oil products.

Would such a tax have a major effect on the texting culture? Only time will tell.

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