Patent ID: 7542772

Claim:
A method for storing short message service (SMS) in a mobile communication terminal comprising: when a new SMS is received, checking whether an empty region exists in a SMS storage space of a user identity module (UIM) or not; when an empty region does not exist in the SMS storage space of the UIM, performing a space exchange between a SMS storage space of the terminal and the SMS storage space of the UIM; and storing the new SMS in the empty SMS storage space of the UIM generated by the space exchange, wherein performing the space exchange includes: when an empty region does not exist in the SMS storage space of the UIM, checking whether an empty region exists in the SMS storage space of the terminal or not; when an empty region exists in the SMS storage space of the terminal, reviewing a state and an offset address of a plurality of SMS messages in a SMS management list to determine a SMS having a lower preferential order among the SMS stored at the UIM, the preferential order from lowest to highest comprising read SMS, new unread SMS, and new unread urgent SMS; and moving the determined SMS having the lower preferential order to the SMS storage space of the terminal and then generating an empty region at the SMS storage space of the UIM, and wherein a new SMS is refused and not received if all storage spaces of the terminal and all storage spaces of the UIM are filled up, wherein the reviewed SMS management list includes information related to at least one SMS having a read status, information related to at least one SMS having an unread status and information related to at least one SMS having a new unread urgent status.