The subject matter described herein includes methods, systems, and computer program products for transferring a message service payload between messaging entities. According to one aspect, the subject matter described herein includes a method for intelligently processing a message service payload being transmitted between messaging entities. A messaging service message comprising a payload being transmitted from an N-generation messaging entity to an M-generation messaging entity is received at a core network, wherein N and M are integers. The payload is decoded to identify a service to be provided. An action is performed to facilitate the providing of the identified service.