Following the lead of their over-the-top frenemies, the wireless operators are easing into decoupling services from smartphones -- starting with texting.

Telefónica SA, via its Digital innovation arm, and Verizon Wireless are two carriers kickstarting this trend. Verizon recently announced an update to its message service that would let its customers send text and multimedia messages from their PC or tablet as they would their smartphone. The service is free and limited to texting at launch.

Telefonica Digital, on the other hand, recently launched a similar service, but with the added functionality of video and voice communications, and the addition of a price tag. The carrier's new Tu Go service uses a customer's real phone number and makes it usable on any connected device for a monthly fee for its contract customers.

Get the rest of the story at Innovation Generation. — Sarah Reedy, contributing editor, Light Reading