A record number of texts were sent over the New Year.

The Mobile Data Association (MDA) reports that 111 million text messages were sent between midnight on 31st December and midnight on 1st January - nearly twice the daily average for 2003 and eight per cent up on the year before.

Said the MDA's Mike Short: "The large amount of text messages sent at New Year confirms that most people see text messaging as a warm, personal and cost-effective way to greet their friends and loved ones on special occasions.

"The use of text is also expanding into picture messaging as people explore the range of mobile messaging services that are becoming available."

Yesterday, mobile phone services outfit Sicap used evidence from an extremely limited trial it carried out to claim that "UK mobile operators struggled to cope with the strain of millions of New Year's texts".

A spokeswoman for mobile phone giant Vodafone denied that the company had "struggled" on the busiest night of the year for text messages, but admitted that "some texts might have taken longer to get through". ®

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