Setting up an sms/mms server

Setting up an sms/mms server SearchSearch
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greg brant
New member
Username: Greg_brant

Post Number: 1
Registered: 12-2003
Posted on Wednesday, December 03, 2003 - 02:31 pm:   

how do i go about it...
im guessing i need to get some sort of account with one of the mobile networks...?

Anonymous
 
Posted on Thursday, January 15, 2004 - 02:54 pm:   

hiya mate... we are looking to do the exact same! in the uk! we have found out little bits of info.. but not much... it all seems to be a bit hush hush! if you want the info we have found out email me on sales@moph-design.fsnet.co.uk or post on here! many thanx and good luck
Bryce Norwood - NowSMS Support
Board Administrator
Username: Bryce

Post Number: 1632
Registered: 10-2002
Posted on Thursday, January 15, 2004 - 05:02 pm:   

Hi,

It's not hush-hush. If you do a search on Google, you'll find a ton of companies that want to sell you an SMS connection. (Search using keywords of SMS gateway.)

However, being an SMS service provider is a low margin business. Ultimately, a mobile operator gets paid for every SMS message delivered, and everyone else is a middleman. And because there are so many of them competing, typically the margins are very low.

(You'll also see a lot of free SMS sites out there, but those sites are all paying for messages to be delivered, they just subsidise their costs by advertising. So while they are a good solution for individuals, they are not a good solution for other automated sending requirements.)

As the margins are low, these service providers often tend to concentrate primarily on bigger customers. I remember one service provider telling me that he didn't want to talk to anyone unless they were sending a million messages a month. (Thankfully many will deal with smaller accounts than that.)

My experience has also been that a lot of providers are operating on such low margins that customer service is very limited. This leads to a lot of the "hush hush" perception, because they don't do a good job of even responding to new customer inquiries.

I see your e-mail address is in the UK. I know we have customers using MPP Global, Skymo/Deltica, among others. I'd consider both of those to be a little higher priced, but they offer relatively good customer service.

We also have customers that connect direct to the operators. Any of the operators will happily sell you an SMS account, but they are relatively expensive unless you are dealing in extremely high volumes (operators typically charge high setup fees to create an account, but you'll get cheaper rates at extremely high volumes).

The other providers act as SMS aggregators. They buy bulk capacity from the operators, so they can spread the setup fee costs across more customers, and they can offer better prices at all but the highest volumes.

There are also providers that deliver into the UK via other operators over roaming connections. Performance may be a little slower, but the rates are often cheaper. You'll see quite a few references to Clickatell on our discussion boards, because they offer such a service, and do a reasonable job of customer service and inquiry follow-up.

So, yes to get started sending SMS, you need an account with a service provider, or it is also possible to send messages using a GSM modem.

A GSM modem is a specialised device (such as the Siemens MC35 or Sierra Wireless Aircard 750) that accepts an operator SIM card and operates on the mobile network. You are charged for sending SMS via the modem the same as you would be if the SIM card was in a mobile phone.

Many mobile phones also offer inbuilt GSM modem capabilities, and can be connected to a PC using a serial or USB cable, or sometimes an infrared or bluetooth link.

GSM modems can be a good solution for lower volume requirements. GSM modems are also a very good solution when you need to be able to receive SMS messages as well as send them. (We have a lot of customers who use GSM modems to receive messages, and route outbound messages through service providers.)

I hope that helps.

-bn
Will Smith
New member
Username: Welsh_guy

Post Number: 3
Registered: 01-2004
Posted on Friday, January 16, 2004 - 12:51 am:   

hiya mate.. repect!! you do know ur stuff! that helped loads!! I still have a few questions tho: We want to be able to allow users to send a short message via a short number to our system, then they are sent back a pin using reverse billing £1.50. This pin can then be used to access content of a webpage of ours! We have looked at companies like MPP Global.. who will set it up for you and everything.. however we dont want this as many companies charge high % of the sms money! We want to only be deduced by the operator.. if u get me?... so will this require server-side software both running the sms gateway together with a DB system of sum sort? Would we have to set up different account with every opertor in the uk? or could we use SMS aggregators? Do you have any estimate on the set up fees? sorry about all the questions... we main program in OO langs. and dont know much about the wireless market as you can probably guess! haha.. anyways any info mate would be very greatful! cheers Smithy
Anonymous
 
Posted on Friday, January 16, 2004 - 03:36 am:   

We have an Openwave gateway and have implemented MMS.

But we seem to have problems on difficult to log on, after logging on being booted out, hangs, time outs, connection drops when downloading, etc.

Any suggestions to solve these would help. Appreciate it.



Bryce Norwood - NowSMS Support
Board Administrator
Username: Bryce

Post Number: 1647
Registered: 10-2002
Posted on Friday, January 16, 2004 - 03:57 pm:   

Hi Smithy,

Sign up for Source O2 (www.sourceo2.com). After you login, you can access the following URL:

http://www.sourceo2.com/O2_Developers/O2_technologies/SMS/O2_SMS_Services.htm

This will tell you O2's rates for premium rate SMS. And you can compare that with what rates from aggregators.

The other UK operators have similar "developer" web sites, and that is usually a good place to start for either finding this information, or finding a phone number or e-mail address to contact to get the premium SMS rates.

http://www.developers.orange.co.uk/ is Orange's site.

I'm not sure about Vodafone or T-Mobile's developer web sites. And to be honest, O2 is the only of these operators where I have actually seen an easy to access price list, which is why I pointed to that URL above.

Generally speaking, there is cross operator support for premium rate SMS within most countries (including the UK), so you only need to connect through one of the operators.

-bn
Bryce Norwood - NowSMS Support
Board Administrator
Username: Bryce

Post Number: 1648
Registered: 10-2002
Posted on Friday, January 16, 2004 - 04:07 pm:   


quote:

We have an Openwave gateway and have implemented MMS.

But we seem to have problems on difficult to log on, after logging on being booted out, hangs, time outs, connection drops when downloading, etc.




Sorry, I wish I could help.

I don't have any experience with the actual management of an Openwave gateway.

They don't let you download evaluation copies of the web like we do here @ www.nowsms.com and www.nowwap.com.
Will Smith
New member
Username: Welsh_guy

Post Number: 4
Registered: 01-2004
Posted on Friday, January 16, 2004 - 04:46 pm:   

hey Bryce..

thanx loads.. those links were really useful!One more thing tho.. the aggregators.. can you get one which just buys and sells the SMS messages.. or will they try and provide you with a solution aswel.. i.e. we can set-up the rest.. providing we have a set number of texts from each operator? Also i assume.. that we have to set up an account with all the different mobile networks.. not just o2? many thanx again! smithy
Will Smith
New member
Username: Welsh_guy

Post Number: 5
Registered: 01-2004
Posted on Monday, January 19, 2004 - 01:24 pm:   

hello Bryce.. u there?
Bryce Norwood - NowSMS Support
Board Administrator
Username: Bryce

Post Number: 1673
Registered: 10-2002
Posted on Monday, January 19, 2004 - 07:34 pm:   

Smithy,

While some aggregators also sell consulting and customisation services, most are happy to just sell you the SMS connectivity, and you figure out how you manage your connection to them.

Even for premium rate, you generally just have to setup an account with one of the operators, and they offer interoperability to reach customers of the other UK carriers.

-bn
Will Smith
New member
Username: Welsh_guy

Post Number: 6
Registered: 01-2004
Posted on Tuesday, January 20, 2004 - 05:34 pm:   

arrrh ok thanx mate...:-)
iotk.co.uk
Unregistered guest
Posted on Thursday, January 22, 2004 - 09:50 pm:   

Hey Guys!...

I think i can help you and you can help me...
I have just finished writing some software which can be installed on any PC connected to the internet. After reading your comments i can promise that i was thinking the same and having the same thoughts last year, so as i was saying..
i have written a program which you install on a PC and you can use it as a SMS server and a regular WEB page server.
it allows you to recieve messages on your pc and send messages from your pc (only sms at the moment but im writing mms next)
you can link it to a web page, for example if someone types a mobile number in at your website...you can automatically send them a text message... with a pin number or password or something.... (like ive done on my site..feel free to try it.- you will NOT get charged!!!)

I have it running on my home pc and is linked to my website which is " ifonlytheyknew.com "

Now i need my sms server software tested by people who are also want sms server software and are interested in a simular area namely SMS, MMS and WEBSERVING, basically everything you need to get you own website with mms and sms facilities...
or just offering people an sms service..

So if your interested in having this software (i can email it (around 40 Mb) or if you like i will stick it on a CD for ya.
I AM NOT CHARGING FOR THIS SOFTWARE.. it is free but i would simply ask for you to feedback any problems with it or any suggestions how you think it can be improved.

You can see what i have tried to do with such a service on my website... so feel free to test the site. www.ifonlytheyknew.com

I can only give a limited number of copies of the software because as Bryce Norwood said earlier... someone has to pay for these messages and in this case it will be me... Hence i can only give so many copies before im pennyless.

If you wanna try this software ( its called "sms server" ) havent had time to think of a snazzy name yet.. ;-) just check out my site and email me with you details and ill send you a copy.
(well a few of ya.. )

raj ... Oh and let us know how i could improve my site... thanks...
(Sorry no americans please... nothing personal... its just that the software is written for use around the UK mainly..and a few european places)

raj
www.ifonlytheyknew.com
Will Smith
New member
Username: Welsh_guy

Post Number: 7
Registered: 01-2004
Posted on Tuesday, February 03, 2004 - 12:54 am:   

hiya mate wots ur email address and i will contact u via there!!.. i have looked at the site and its all good!
Will Smith
New member
Username: Welsh_guy

Post Number: 8
Registered: 01-2004
Posted on Tuesday, February 03, 2004 - 06:01 pm:   

Bryce.. i wonder if you could answer a quick question for me! I am current developing a Peer to Peer file sharing system over a 3G network! basicly users will be able to share ringtomes and pictures and games for a small initial fee for downloading the software.. do u kknow any starting points.. or any sites which might be able to help me out!! many thanx Smithy
Will Smith
New member
Username: Welsh_guy

Post Number: 9
Registered: 01-2004
Posted on Thursday, February 05, 2004 - 01:51 pm:   

Bryce u there?
Hugo Rodger-Brown
New member
Username: Hugorodgerbrown

Post Number: 7
Registered: 01-2004
Posted on Thursday, February 05, 2004 - 10:29 pm:   

Try mxtelecom (www.mxtelecom.com). Not only do they have a lot of explanatory material, they also have the complete price lists for all UK operators reverse-billing SMS setups. They won't try and sell consultancy, and they talk to developers (details of SOAP, XML/HTTP interfaces can all be found on the site.)

If you just want to use a PIN sent via SMS for charging, you could do worse than check out metacharge (http://www.metacharge.com/) - they operate exactly that system - as seen on the ministry of sound website for charging for premium radio services.

Anonymous
Unregistered guest
Posted on Tuesday, February 10, 2004 - 12:26 pm:   

MMS

Hi! does anyone know if its possible to setup a recipient for MMS with an industry modem dedicated for it?

Can the modem receive from all operations?

The country is Sweden.

cheers

Andreas W
Amy
Unregistered guest
Posted on Thursday, February 19, 2004 - 09:26 pm:   

Hiya how do i set up an account so i can send free texts of the net???