System and protocol for extending functionality of wireless communication messaging

An apparatus and method for extending the functionality of a message according to a predetermined message format, such as the Short Message Service (SMS) format, communicated at least in part via a wireless communication system, the method including the steps of: determining a number of bits to be used for conveying extension data indicating instructions associated with displaying the message; defining the information to be conveyed by each bit; and inserting the extension data into the message at the end of a user data field of the message. The method thus provides an extension to the messaging according to the predetermined format, an extension that is effective for mobile terminals adapted to interpret the extension data but that does not prevent mobile terminals not so adapted from displaying the message without regard for the instructions indicated by the extension data.