(AFP) The country's five mobile phone operators today said they will band together to allow users of different networks to send text messages to each other by the end of next month.

In a statement late yesterday, the operators said inter-operator short message services (SMS) would "undoubtedly provide greater synergy and growth for the country's telecommunications industry".

The five players are Celcom Malaysia, Digi Telecommunications, Maxis Communications, state-owned Telekom Malaysia and TIMECel.

The statement said the new service was expected to be well-received, based on encouraging take-up rates overseas.

The service would be rolled out in stages and not all aspects of the joint arrangement would be working until network testing and commercial agreements were signed, it added.

There are some five million local mobile phone users.

Subscribers can currently send text messages only to those using the same service provider.