14 DAY TRIAL // A long time ago it was not possible to send images from mobile phones to other mobile phones or to an email address. Text messages were the only alternative to calling. Fortunately, those days are over and picture messaging has become quite an usual thing.
The number of mobile phones equipped with a camera is constantly increasing and soon, all of them will probably allow you to take a snapshot of something while walking on the street, push another button to send a picture message and share it with your friends or family.
Generally, all camera phones come with multimedia message (MMS) support. And everyone knows how important mobile phones have become for all of us. Simply ask yourself how many times you've actually left home without your cell phone and you'll understand then how important it is. Because the cell phone is with you almost at all times, New York City will become the first city in the U.S. to upgrade its 911 and 311 call centers to handle picture messaging.
"Imagine someone caught in a hostage situation transmitting pictures or video. It's just an incredible amount of information that can be gathered from fairly simple technology", Mayor Michael Bloomberg said in his State of the City address.
Basically, the more information the police has about a case, the easier will the case be solved. For example, in 2005, two Catholic schoolgirls surprised a subway flasher by snapping his mug with their camera phone. With the photos provided, the police easily tracked down and arrested the man.
People from NYC will soon be able to send both picture messages and video messages to the city's 911 emergency call centers directly from their mobile phones, while landliners will also be able to transmit images via the Web.