From the BBC…
“A record-breaking number of text messages were sent in the UK on New Year's Eve.
An estimated 125 million messages were sent, more than two times the daily average, according to the Mobile Data Association (MDA).
Most of the messages were sent around midnight or shortly afterwards, as people rushed to wish friends and relatives a happy New Year.”
The next big surge in SMS and in particular picture messaging is expected to be on Valentine's Day. Picture messaging has been slow to take off in the UK due in part to the slow uptake of expensive MMS handsets and high network costs. Poor service provider interoperability has also been a barrier, at least until recently. Maybe Valentine's Day will bring the start of the turnaround for picture messaging.