UK CBA with text messages, favouring instant messaging apps instead

According to new data from Deloitte, the number of text messages being sent in the UK is at an all-time low, as free instant message apps such as Whatsapp, Snapchat and Facebook Chat are embraced by smartphone users.

Falling by 7bn to 145bn, Deloitte predicts this year will see the number of texts fall even lower, to around 140bn.

According to the data, 160bn instant messages were sent in the UK in 2013, overtaking texts for the first time in history. By the end of this year, it is predicted that 300bn instant messages will be sent – over double the usual number of texts. On a global level, experts are predicting a massive 50bn instant messages to be sent a day, compared to 21bn texts.

Rather than bothering with cumbersome old-fashioned texts, young users looking to send images and videos to friends, often in large group chats, are downloading fun, colourful apps by their dozens, expanding their modes of communication as a result of staying on top of instant message trends.

It’s not just young people getting on board the instant message revolution however, with research predicting that around half of over-55s within developed countries will be smartphone owners by the end of 2014.

The head of telecoms research at Deloitte, Paul Lee, told the Guardian: “This is the first decline in texting in the UK since texting was invented. We have reached a tipping point. But the usage of mobile phones to send messages is stronger than ever. This year, trillions of instant messages will be sent in place of a text message.”