Today we track the impact of chat apps on the once-dominant SMS.
Nearly two thirds of WhatsApp users in the UK say that chat apps are now one of their primary forms of digital communication and, tellingly, over half say they now almost always use them instead of sending a text message.
It’s not all bad news for SMS messages, though: more than half of WhatsAppers say they expect them to remain important – indicating that it’s the volume and frequency of sending a text which is likely to contract, rather than the format being eclipsed altogether.
The future isn’t looking quite so positive for the MMS message, though: only 16% of WhatsApp users say they represent a better way of sending a photo or video than a chat app.