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White Paper J200
20 November 2004
Pictures, animations and formatted text
Phones supporting EMS include a set of pre-
defined animations for inserting in SMS messages.
New pictures and animations are downloaded from
the Internet or received in SMS messages. Several
pictures can be inserted in one message, and they
can be combined with sounds and melodies. The
users can format text in messages with different
styles and sizes.
Concatenated messages (long SMS)
A part of the EMS standard is the support for con-
catenated messages, which means that the phone
is able to automatically combine several messages
both when creating and receiving EMS. This is use-
ful to be able to build and display messages with
rich content since the amount of information in
each SMS is limited by the SMS standards.
Compatible with SMS standards
Users have found EMS as easy to use as SMS. In
January 2001, 15 billion SMS messages were sent
every month worldwide. Roughly 80% of this traffic
was user-to-user i.e. mobile phone users sending
short messages to each other using the keypad of
the phone to enter text. The remaining 20% con-
sisted of downloads and notifications of different
kinds.
Huge business potential
Network operators can now enhance their services
and attract more customers by offering pictures,
animations, ringtones and melodies for download
at their portals. Operators can charge more per
EMS message since it contains more data. Thereby
EMS adds more value to the operators and to the
end users.
Standards
The Enhanced Messaging Service (EMS) standard
has evolved and is now stable and complete as a
part of the 3rd Generation Partnership Project
(3GPP) technical specification. Most major mobile
phone manufacturers and most operators are
actively contributing to the 3GPP standards.
EMS dynamics
An EMS message can be sent to a mobile phone
that does not support EMS, or only supports part
of EMS. All the EMS elements - text formatting,
pictures, animations and sounds - are located in
the message header. The EMS contents are
ignored by a receiving phone that does not support
the standard. Only the text message will be dis-
played to the receiver. This is true consumer-
friendly standardization.
Examples of EMS contents and
applications
A wide range of contents, applications and serv-
ices may be developed. Below is a list of examples
and areas where messaging can be enhanced with
EMS.
User-to-user message
Messages usually originating from the keypad of a
mobile phone can include pictures, animations,
melodies, formatted text with EMS.
Voice and e-mail notifications
Notifying mobile phone users that they have new
voice or fax mail messages waiting - including
icons or melodies with EMS.
Unified messaging
The user typically receives a short message notify-
ing them that they have a new message in their uni-
fied messaging box, with icons or formatted text
further enhancing the message.
Internet e-mail alerts
An Internet e-mail alert is provided in the form of a
short message that typically details the sender of
the e-mail, the subject field and first few words of
the e-mail message, and in this case formatted text
is excellent to identify message elements.
Ringtones
Downloading ringtones from the Internet.
News & commercials
World news illustrated, sports scores and news
headlines, finance and stock market news with dia-
grams and tickers, commercial product promo-
tions, weather reports with maps, tunes from TV
commercials as ringtones.
Info & entertainment
Ringtones, e-greetings, football club logo, joke-of-
the-day illustrated by pictures or sound, horo-
scopes, movie-related animation or theme song,