Through the auction house Aguttes in France, Vodafone is auctioning the text of the first SMS (Short Messaging Service) in history as NFT.
Received on an Orbitel 901 phone by the then head of the British operator Richard Jarvis, the 15-character “Merry Christmas” message was sent on December 3, 1992, from a computer via the Vodafone network by the programmer Neil Papworth.
For a digital work of art or, in this case, a digital artifact, a non-fungible token (NFT) is like a certificate of digital ownership and for the authenticity of a digital asset. It is based on the blockchain technology of digital registry, with the owner having a digital wallet on the blockchain.
The lot auctioned for the NFT of the first SMS includes a replica of the original communication protocol used in the form of PCAP, TXT, and PDF files, an animated version of the code, a digital frame for a 3D animation of the cell phone during the reception, a certificate signed by the boss of Vodafone.
The auction will begin today at 3 pm. Vodafone is committed to donating all proceeds from the auction to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
Can Vodafone’s NFT hold the same value as that of Wikipedia’s first edit NFT?
Vodafone’s text message NFT is expected to sell for between 100,000 and 200,000 euros. The buyer will be able to make payment in Ether cryptocurrency.
Recently, the NFT of Wikipedia’s first edit had been valued between $100,000 and $150,000, and finally sold for $750,000.
As such, there is a high chance that Vodafone’s text message NFT will exceed its expected sale price.
