Telefonica saw a 22 per cent growth globally in part of its SMS business targeted at the corporate market in 2014/15.

James Lasbrey, the company’s global head of messaging, argued against the perception that SMS has been replaced by what he described as “shinier players”.

While the likes of WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger “are gnawing away” at operators’ messaging share, for specific use-cases customers are clearly placing SMS “at the top of the heap”.

The take-up of application to person (A2P) uses cases is a prime example.

The report finds the ability of SMS to reach 99.99 per cent of mobile devices globally makes it useful for businesses wishing to contact customers.

Telefonica sees both global and local businesses having an interest in A2P, for instance in updating users about deliveries, smart home type applications and local government services.

The operator said it has seen evidence of such take-up in UK and Spain, two of its largest markets, and expects this to accelerate in 2016.

Banking, retail, travel, transport and healthcare also offer significant potential, said the report.

A key attraction for corporates is that SMS can reach the vast majority of users and does not require an additional app download. But many messaging apps are also targeting the A2P market.