Abstract: The invention concerns a procedure and a structure to handle short messages under phone number portability between multiple telecommunications networks, where the phone numbers do not permit an unambiguous linkage of the user to a specific telecommunication network and where several attempts at delivery of the short messages are normally required. In order to accelerate routing in subsequent attempts at delivery and to avoid unnecessary routing queries, the invention proposes that all or part of the parameters or data associated with the first attempt at delivery, particularly the target information, be preferably stored in the SMSC or the SMS-GMSC in order to be reused, at least in part, in subsequent attempts at delivery.

Abstract: The invention concerns a procedure and a structure to handle short messages under phone number portability between multiple telecommunications networks, where the phone numbers do not permit an unambiguous linkage of the user to a specific telecommunication network and where several attempts at delivery of the short messages are normally required. In order to accelerate routing in subsequent attempts at delivery and to avoid unnecessary routing queries, the invention proposes that all or part of the parameters or data associated with the first attempt at delivery, particularly the target information, be preferably stored in the SMSC or the SMS-GMSC in order to be reused, at least in part, in subsequent attempts at delivery.