Subscription web/desktop app [PYTHON]
I'd like to comment on the SMS alert part.
First, I have to admit that I'm not familiar with Django, but I assume it to be just like most other web frameworks: request based.  This might be your first problem, as the alert service needs to run independently of requests.  You could of course hack together something to externally trigger a request once a day... :-)
Now for the SMS part: much depends on how you plan to implement this.  If you are going with an SMS provider, there are many to choose from that let you send SMS with a simple HTTP request.  I wouldn't recommend the other approach, namely using a real cellphone or SMS modem and take care of the delivery yourself: it is way too cumbersome and you have to take into account a lot more issues: e.g. retry message transmission for handsets that are turned off or aren't able to receive SMS because their memory is full.  Your friendly SMS provider will probably take care of this.
Firstly pardon me if i've yet again failed to title my question correctly.
I am required to build an app to manage magazine subscriptions. The client wants to enter subscriber data and then receive alerts at pre-set intervals such as when the subscription of a subscriber is about to expire and also the option to view all subscriber records at any time. Also needed is the facility to send an SMS/e-mail to particular subscribers reminding them for subscription renewal. 
I am very familiar with python but this will be my first real project. I have decided to build it as a web app using django, allowing the admin user the ability to view/add/modify all records and others to subscribe. What options do I have for integrating an online payment service? Also how do I manage the SMS alert functionality? Any other pointers/suggestions would be welcome.
Thank You