Home  |  About Us  |  Press Room  |  2003  |  THUS helps Amstrad to boost e-m@iler and e-m@ilerplus SMS revenues by enabling two-way texting

2003

As of today, two-way texting will be added to the compelling list of services provided by Amstrad's home communications tool, the "e-m@ilerplus". E-m@iler and e-m@ilerplus users are charged on pay-as-you-go basis for value added services including email, Internet access, and sms texting. Two-way texting - the ability to send and receive SMS messages - is expected to fuel greater usage of the text service and is designed to stimulate existing revenue streams for Amstrad.

Until today, e-m@iler and e-m@ilerplus customers could send text messages to any UK mobile number but they have not been able to receive replies. The service has now been enhanced so that mobile phone users can respond to those text messages. The telecommunication platform supporting the various services, including the new two-way SMS service, is provided by THUS plc, one of the UK's leading suppliers of voice, data, Internet and contact centre services. The technical solution provided by THUS is achieved without having to allocate unique mobile numbers to each unit and each unit is capable of similar SMS functionality to that provided by mobile phones.

SMS is increasingly becoming the communications medium of choice for many UK consumers. According to the Mobile Data Association, an industry body established in 1994 to increase awareness of mobile data services, UK consumers sent an average 53 million text messages a day in January 2003 compared to 45 million in January 2002 and 30 million in January 2001.

"E-m@ilerplus users can now fully enjoy the fun and convenience of two-way texting," said Phil Male, Chief Operating Officer, THUS. "The functionality we've added is designed to encourage increased use of the text messaging service by e-m@ilerplus customers and provide Amstrad with an additional competitive advantage. This latest innovation in text messaging builds upon our successful delivery of the UK's first two-way texting service for interactive television last year."

Simon Sugar, Commercial Director at Amstrad said: "We are delighted to be able to offer this significant enhancement to the e-m@iler and e-m@ilerplus service. SMS is already extremely popular with users, and we expect the two-way SMS service to boost uptake even further. The excellent level of service provided by THUS, together with its understanding of what our customers require, made it the logical choice for this project."