Great info, bearbones!
We can currently send SMS anywhere, but doing so is cost prohibitive. Even in the U.S. we average more than $0.06 per send. That is, each SMS message costs us $0.01, and a typical send requires at minimum 5 messages:
Oh, so you pay for both directions (incoming/receiving as well as outgoin/sending)?
Coinapult requires a text message response from the mobile number the funds were sent to so at least with that there's no bearer code being transmitted across the SMS network.
We consider this basic security, but is ultimately inadequate. At the moment, the initial 'receive' message still carries a bearer code, which is vulnerable in the same way blockchain's are.
Ah, I forgot that Coinpult was dual mode -- the funds are automatically in the SMS wallet, or the recipient can spend using the URL in the message as well (with the URL acting as a bearer code).
How many days after realizing that SMS wallets are starting to catch on before texts to and from the SMS wallet provider's number are blocked? (and thus the user's funds left stranded, at least temporarily). Unlike bitcoin's peer-to-peer architecture, telecom infrastructure operates as the givernment instructs them to.
This problem may be a little overstated. Governments don't always act so efficiently, and they'd have a tough time blocking us in such a way. Assuming we go international through a series of phone numbers in different service areas, it would be quite easy to get new numbers for any given service area. The local gov. and mobile service provider would be playing whack a mole.
Oh, sure -- I forgot that with cloud / integration each transaction can get its own unique "from / reply to" number. Ok, so they need to do payload inspection instead.
Well, regardless this is all encouraging. There's so very much potential when extending bitcoin to the moble wireless voice/data network as its reach goes so much further than terrestrial and wi-fi Internet access goes (geographically, and participation of a community as well)