U.S. Cellphone Users Don't Seem to Get Message About Messaging "What if they had pounded the golden spike into the continental railroad and nobody noticed? ... That is essentially what happened in the United States cellular telephone world last spring. Since April it has been possible for the customers of any of the major United States cellular carriers to send one another short text messages, but most customers still have no idea the service exists. ... But conditions elsewhere are different. Short message service is popular in other parts of the world partly because sending a text message has been less expensive than making a phone call and also because Europe and Asia have lagged behind the United States in e-mail and instant messaging."