Operators everywhere are racing to deploy 3G networks, spending great sums to obtain spectrum licenses. The Clinton administration finally got involved and demanded that the FCC do something within the next TWO years. That means that even if the US rolls out 3G networks as fast as everyone else, the US will still be 2 years behind. That's a lifetime in this industry. And that's not all that's missing.
Messages take days to get through the networks and only now are phones allowing two-way messaging.
And don't mention the fact that SMS messages from one network cannot be sent to any other network. And current estimates in Europe are about 10 Billion messages a month, with the operators making some money on each. The US operators are missing a big revenue stream while the users are begging for the opportunity to pay. While these browsers can read WML WAP sites, some US content providers are writing HDML-based sites. The US will have to WAP its act together so that we are not isolated by incompatibility.