The world's first text SMS was sent about 30 years ago on December 3, 1992. It was sent to Richard Jarvis, Vodafone employee . This SMS had 14 characters. The text that Jarvis received through SMS read 'Merry Christmas'

Merry Christmas': World's first-ever text message sells for $121,000 in auction.

On 3 December 1992, the world's first SMS text message was 'Merry Christmas,' which was sent on the Vodafone network and received by Vodafone employee Richard Jarvis.

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Today, Vodafone auctioned off the text message as NFT, with the proceeds going to UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, to help forcibly displaced people.

It was sold as a 'Non-Fungible Token' at a Paris auction house on Tuesday for 107,000 euros ($121,000).

The winning bidder will be the sole owner of a detailed and one-of-a-kind replica of the original communication protocol that sent the world's first SMS.

Aguttes, France's first independent auction house, will hold the auction on December 21, 2021 in Paris. The buyer will make a payment in Ether cryptocurrency. Vodafone said in a statement that it is combining a world-first innovation from nearly 30 years ago with today's cutting-edge technology.

The exclusive NFT ensures ownership of a one-of-a-kind, detailed replica of the original communication protocol used to send the first text message ever sent.

Vodafone, which is heavily involved in the international art and luxury markets, stated that it expects to attract bidders from all over the world for this sale.

"The first printed book, the first phone call, the first email - all of these inventions have changed our lives and communication around the world," said auction house founder Maximilian Aguttes. We are thrilled to be able to support the sale of this historic piece of history for this cause."

Vodafone will donate the entire auction proceeds to UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, in order to assist the 82.4 million people who have been forced to flee their homes due to conflict and persecution.

Non-Fungible Tokens, or NFTs, are a type of digital asset that has gained popularity this year, with NFT artworks fetching millions of dollars.

These digital objects, which include images, video, music, and text, have been traded since around 2017. They exist on blockchain, a record of transactions kept on networked computers. Each NFT bears a distinct digital signature.

Because the sale of intangible goods is illegal in France, the auction house packaged the text message in a digital frame that displayed the code and communication protocol, according to Maximilien Aguttes, the Aguttes Auction House's head of development.