Telerivet lets you create your own SMS service anywhere in the world [video]

Last week was the 20th anniversary of the SMS, and what better to celebrate than news of a startup enabling you to set up your own SMS service anywhere in the world?

SMS is old news to us in the West, but for much of the developing world it’s the standard form of communication when it comes to business.  Telerivet, founded by Stanford grad Joshua Stern, works by using an Android phone to relay SMS between your mobile network and Telerivet.com. When anyone sends a message to your Andriod phone it will automatically be sent to Telerivet and when you send messages from Telerivet it will be sent to your Android.

The service also has an open API so developers can send and receive SMS anywhere in the world. The company has offices in both Silicon Valley and Tanzania where it has made a significant impact on local businesses who can now bring their customers information such as opening hours and local transportation options. Organizations like bus or ferry companies in countries such as Tanzania can use custom templates for booking applications or communication brokering between buyers.

Although Terlerivet does support Tropo and Twillio integration, the service allows organizations to set up a mobile gateway independent of these cloud based communication services.

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Stern tells us since the launch of the service four months ago ‘10,000 people’s lives have been improved in Africa, Asia and America by Telirivet’s SMS services.’ Watch the video below to hear more from Joshua Stern.