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Michael Mikhjian
Michael Mikhjian

Reputation: 2794

Determining a phone's SMS / MMS carrier in the US

Okay so I know how to send out SMS's / MMS's via a phone with a provided carrier (via matching the carrier's email.. i.e. Verizon = @vtext.com).

Now, I also know that I can use services like Twilio, but I think it doesn't make sense to pay for something you can achieve programmatically. Same goes for Cloudvox, it's free but I noticed it's not accurate.

So here's what I thought of: What if we took the number, switched it amongst the various popular carriers (via SMTP mail check) and return the confirmed carrier.

I attempted to test with vtext.com, but it didn't work.. I'm assuming they don't accept mailbox check's via SMTP?

Upvotes: 1

Views: 2969

Answers (1)

jbjon
jbjon

Reputation: 1257

As I mentioned in the comment thread to your question there is no reliable, free method of determining what mobile network a phone number is currently on. MSISDNs get allocated to telephony networks to begin with but then customers can be free to move their numbers between carriers these days. The free information you can get from services like numberingplans.com then becomes invalid as the initial network allocation no longer applies.

Whilst the US seems to make use of the mobile networks providing a free method of sending SMS via an email address, this is not normally the case for networks around the world.

Mobile networks themselves are subscribed to up to date lists. If an SMS isn't destined for a number they know they host, they will consult the list to determine what network interconnect to send it out to. This is how your mobile handset is able to SMS users on other networks.

You can still use email to send SMS using SMS Gateway services like Esendex or Clickatel. They would then determine the best route to send the messages (provided the SMS Gateway themselves have more than one route out which some of the low cost ones don't) and as they have direct interconnects to the mobile networks its then routed in a similar manner to if you'd sent the message yourself using a handset. Twilio's service involves using their API rather than email to send messages. Esendex, Clickatel and the like will also provide API access.

So if your message is important enough for you to want to ensure that it gets to the right place, then the best way is to shop around for a reliable, professional SMS Gateway that will assist you in getting your message delivered without you having to have that headache.

(Disclaimer: I work for Esendex but provide this answer as a general approach to how sending SMS using an SMS Gateway solves your problem as the alternative solution of using email addresses to send to US networks reliably requires paid access to number location databases to make sure your message got through.)

Upvotes: 3

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