The first SMS sent in SMS format was sold as an NFT for around R $ 800,000.
The auction took place on Tuesday (21) in Paris, conducted by Aguttes. The non-fungible token (NFT) was created by Vodafone and represents the first SMS sent in the history of technology.
The message, sent on December 3, 1992, contained only two words, ideal for this time of year: “Merry Christmas” (“Merry Christmas” in the original).
Vodafone engineer Neil Papworth sent the text from his computer to UK director of the same company, Richard Jarvis, who received it on his 2kg Orbitel phone – which even looks like a cordless desk phone.
“They were in the middle of the holiday events, so he sent the message ‘Merry Christmas’,” explains Maximilien Aguttes, development manager of the Aguttes auction house.
Since France does not allow the sale of intangible goods, such as NFT, the auction house has conditioned the SMS in a digital frame, displaying the code and the communication protocol.
The buyer, a Canadian whose identity has not been disclosed related to the tech sector, will receive the digital replica as NFT of the original communication protocol that transmitted the 15 character SMS and the proceeds will be donated to the United Nations Refugee Agency, UNHCR.
“Technology has always had the power to innovate and change the world. And, through the combination of technology and social movement, UNHCR can continue to help refugees and those who have been forced to leave their homes, giving them the opportunity to transform their lives and build a better future for themselves. Vodafone said.
Popularity of NFTs in the sights of major auction houses
NFTs became so popular with collectors that large traditional auction houses like Christie’s could not be excluded from this type of activity. The auction house sold the most expensive NFT collection to date, “EVERYDAYS: THE FIRST 5000 DAYS” by digital artist Beeple. The work is a collage of 5,000 individual images, taken once a day for over 13 years.
Beeple’s NFT was auctioned for a record $ 69 million on March 11, 2021. Christie’s was the first traditional auction house to sell a non-fungible token.
In early December, the NFTs of Wikipedia’s first article and the computer used by Wikipedia’s co-creator went up for auction for nearly a million dollars ($ 937,500.) There is already more than evidence that the NFT auctions are becoming a success. no one wants to be left behind.
These initiatives are not the first time that part of the history of telecommunications has been sold in the NFT format. In July, some of the source code for www, written by computer scientist Sir Tim Berners-Lee in 1990 and 1991, grossed $ 5.43 million.
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