Before smartphones, SMS was a big selling point for US carriers. Plans were very cheap compared to the rest of the world. So we were already accustomed to texting when smartphones arrived. When WhatsApp / Telegram got here, no one in the US really cared because all our contacts already had SMS and MMS.
SMS should have been retired a while ago. But now we've foolishly managed to tie MFA to it...so I doubt its going anywhere anytime soon.
We also used SMS before smartphones, but only for a bit, because most people paid per message. Some, like me, did figure out mobile data and did use ICQ (via JIMM and, in my case, NatICQ) and VKontakte (via Opera Mini) from their phones. Either way, messaging services tied to a single device have never caught on very much in the first place around me, and so stuff like WhatsApp is a tough sell. iMessage is an absolute non-starter because the only world in which everyone uses an iPhone is the fantasy one dreamed up by Apple.
Today, 99% of my SMS messages are various notifications and login codes.
SMS should have been retired a while ago. But now we've foolishly managed to tie MFA to it...so I doubt its going anywhere anytime soon.