Sensis launches SMS directory service

Stuart Corner
Tuesday, 06 December 2005 07:47

Your IT - Home IT

Sensis has launched what it claims is Australia's first text message search service, enabling mobile phone users to search for a business or residential directory listing by sending an SMS to retrieve, via return SMS, information from the Yellow Pages or White Pages directories.

The service is available by dialing to 191 SMS (191 767) to mobile customers of Telstra, Optus, 3, Vodafone, Hutchison (Orange) or Virgin, at a cost of 55 cents per request.

Sebastian Baldwin - general manager, Sensis Wireless, suggests that the service, Sensis SMS, will become "one of those products that will make Australians wonder how they ever lived without it".

However the process seems cumbersome compared to calling directory assistance for the number and being given the option of having it delivered as an SMS.

There are slightly different steps to follow, depending on whether they are looking for business or residential information. For business information they must type the letter "b", a space and then the business name or category (space), suburb (space), and state. For residential contact information it's "p" space followed by the person's surname (space), initial (if known) (space), suburb (space) and state.