Key Takeaways:
- World’s first “Merry Christmas” message to go on sale in an auction by Vodaphone.
- More than $2 lakh is expected to be raised at the auction.
- Those who place a bid on the SMS at the auction will be required to pay in Ethereum.
- Vodafone has stated that it will donate all proceeds from the auction to the UN Refugee Agency, UNHCR, to assist the 82.4 million migrants who have left for various reasons.
Vodafone is auctioning off the world’s first text message. The company stated that this SMS would be auctioned as a Non-Fungible Token (NFT). Vodafone announced on its official Twitter account that this is the company’s first NFT and that it is converting it to NFT to auction the world’s first SMS text. More than $2 lakh is expected to be raised at the auction.
Those who place a bid on the SMS at the auction will be required to pay in Ethereum. After the auction concludes, the successful bidder will be the sole owner of the original code that conveyed the world’s first text. The first message said, “Merry Christmas”. Vodafone has stated that it will donate all proceeds from the auction to the UN Refugee Agency, UNHCR, to assist the 82.4 million migrants who have left for various reasons.
The auction will take place on December 21 at Augettes Auction House’s Instagram account. Ahmed Essam, chief executive officer of Vodafone UK, stated that they are thrilled to be bringing together a big technological invention from their history with cutting-edge technology from today, NFT, to help those in desperate need of support, according to City AM.
According to Vodafone, this exclusive NFT was created in the first edition, and this world’s first SMS will not make a second NFT in the future. NFT purchasers will also receive a certificate signed by Vodafone Group CEO Nick Reed, certifying the NFT’s uniqueness and authenticity. In addition, Vodafone will provide customers who purchase NFT with a detailed replica of the original communication protocol. This will include the world’s first SMS sending and receiving of information. Customers can also download Vodafone’s basic communication protocol in TXT and PDF files (coded and uncoded versions).
With this auction, Vodafone Germany CEO Hannes Ametsreiter stated that they are bringing together the pioneering spirit of two centuries. He also mentioned that the SMS is being sold for a good cause. According to The Mirror, Ametsreiter also stated that sending a short text message nearly three decades ago was a watershed moment in the development of mobile communications technology and that today, billions of people around the world send holiday greetings in the form of texts, videos, audio messages, and emoticons for Christmas, Hanukkah, Eid, and a variety of other holidays.
He also stated that if the first “Merry Christmas” text message had not been sent to a cell phone, the world would be less connected today.
On December 3, 1992, the world’s first SMS was sent over the Vodafone network. The message on this SMS was ‘Merry Christmas.’ Richard Jarvis, a Vodafone employee, bought it. According to the report of Daily Mail, the world’s first SMS was sent by British programmer Neil Papworth. Neil Papworth worked as a developer and test engineer when he sent this SMS from the computer to his other colleague, Richard Jarvis. Richard Jarvis was then the director of the company. This SMS was sent to them on the Orbitel 901 handset.
