FrontlineSMS is open-source SMS-messaging software enables users to send, receive and manage SMS over a mobile network. It has been downloaded 38,000 times and is in use in over 80 countries.

The desktop version runs on a laptop connected to a GSM modem, a mobile phone, or an online SMS (or text message) service. It can work without the need for Internet access, is easy to set up, simple to operate and free for anyone to use. Users pay for the cost of the SMS they send through their mobile provider. Free support is available to non-profits through the FrontlineSMS website (http://www.frontlinesms.com).

Users wanting a quick set-up, low-cost option should try and use devices - a modem, mobile phone or Android phone running SMSSync (from 2.3) - but FrontlineSMS also works with web-based aggregators such as IntelliSMS and Clickatell, and is adding new services all the time.
FrontlineSMS is made in Kenya, by a developer team including many graduates from Nairobi’s universities.

Why FrontlineSMS matters

FrontlineSMS makes it easier to do complex things using simple text messages. The FrontlineSMS desktop software has become one of the most popular professional SMS management tools for small- and medium-sized enterprises around the world. The team has worked with everyone from last-mile community radio stations to intergovernmental organizations, giving us a wide range of user feedback about what major obstacles remain to the professional and international use of SMS. The two largest obstacles are the complexity of connectivity and the lack of an easy-to-use professional tool.

FrontlineSMS provides an easy-to-use, powerful interface that can be integrated with most mobile networks to provide a go-anywhere solution to SMS management and visualization. Besides passing SMS reports up to Ushahidi, FrontlineSMS allows you to manage SMS, conduct and visualize polls, run subscription services, work with other web-based services and databases, and view incoming SMS as wordclouds.

examples of our users who used Ushahidi SUDIA - http://www.frontlinesms.com/2012/11/23/low-tech-adaptations-for-a-community-communications-system/
StopStockOuts - http://www.frontlinesms.com/2012/06/21/stop-stockouts-accountability-of-health-services-improved-by-frontlinesms/
ReclaimNaija - http://www.frontlinesms.com/2011/04/15/nigerians-mobilize-for-free-and-fair-elections/