Although it has seemingly crept up on us, the "phone" has become a portable "Instant Messenger" device for a large number of users. According to a recent Nielsen survey reported in FierceWireless:

As of Q2 2008, a typical U.S. mobile subscriber sends or receives 357 text messages per month, compared to placing or receiving 204 phone calls. Though the number of calls has remained relatively steady, the number of text messages is up 450% from just two years prior.

That trend is even more pronounced among teenagers, who send/receive an average of 1,742 text messages a month.

What does this mean to us? It has significant implications for anyone related to this industry, such as:

• Implications for form factor and user interface for mobile devices, if the "talking" element is secondary

• Safety concerns about texting in the car, beyond worrying about using hands-free
• Advertising opportunities in exchange for subsidizing the text messages; there are more opportunities to advertise (and in context sensitive way) with text than with voice
• More services that use SMS to transact. I still wonder why the receptionist at my dentist tries to phone me while I am in a meeting just to confirm an appointment, while in other countries it is common that they do the confirmation by text message.

Are we stuck in a "talk" rut?