It appears that the iPhone may get the ability to send and receive picture messages after all...but not from Apple. A Swedish company called Mobispine is working on an MMS application that would be available through the iPhone Apps Store. Too little too late?

The iPhone's inability to send or receive true picture messages, video messages, and voice messages has irked users from the beginning. Despite clear demand for those features, Apple has so far failed to include them with any software updates for the iPhone.

Last week details about the new MMS app from Mobispine began to emerge. The company sent out a press release stating that it was offering a white label MMS service for iPhone to global operators. White labeled services are developed by company X (in this case, Mobipsine) and then sold as a branded service by company Y (in this case, network operators such as AT&T or Vodafone).

Mobispine says of its iPhone MMS application, "Mobispine is proud to unveil the first true MMS service for iPhones. We are confident that global operators will find Mobispine's MMS service for iPhone easy-to-use and profitable," said Dusyant Patel, CEO, Mobispine. "This new offering will help operators generate revenue and differentiate their offerings in a highly competitive market."

Mobispine hasn't said when the application will be available, nor which carriers will offer it. So far, it does not appear that AT&T will be offering the MMS software to its users in the U.S.

Mobispine also doesn't say how users would be billed for the service. Would it be a one-time fee for the application and then the cost of sending/receiving the messages? I already subscribe to an unlimited messaging plan with AT&T. Would MMS messages be rolled into that plan, or would I have to pay for a separate service?

There are no answers to these questions right now. Hopefully more information will unfold in the coming weeks.

Even if Mobispine rolls this application out -- and it becomes available in the U.S. -- a native MMS application would be best. C'mon, Apple, where is it?