REVIEW: Mogreet’s video messaging service: $1+ MMS service should keep parents on their toes

Editor’s Note: Welcome to our weekly feature, Yay or Nay. Every week we’ll review a new wireless application or service from the user’s point of view, with the goal of highlighting what works and what doesn’t. If you wish to submit your application or service for review, please contact us at rcrwebhelp@crain.com.
Application: Mogreet mobile video messaging (beta)
Running on: Samsung Ace on Sprint Nextel/Motorola Q on Verizon Wireless; desktop PC.
Yay: Freak out your friends by sending them a somewhat professionally produced video message. Freak out your parents by having extra charges show up on their wireless bill. Everybody wins.
Nay: Not compatible with all phones. $1 to send a 10-second clip from Tila Tequila or Ron Jeremy? What the deuce? Video messages involve both a text message and data service.
We say: While it’s good to see a company specializing in mobile video messages, Mogreet’s offering either seems over priced for what it delivers or I am just cheap.
Review: The ability for wireless handsets and networks to handle increasingly complex operations has fueled rapid growth in the off-deck world. There are literally thousands of applications wireless users can access from their device that are not part of a carrier’s walled garden, and in many cases are superior to current offerings from carriers. Google Maps is a great example. One whose value is debatable is Southern California-based Mogreet’s video messaging application.
The Mogreet service allows anyone to send a pre-canned video message, or mogreet, to a cellphone from a desktop computer. The Mogreet site offers hundreds of short video clips clumped under such categories such as: occasion, flirting, everyday, smack talk and call me. Most of the short clips, which appear to be around 10 seconds or less, involve some sort of “celebrity” – including such stalwarts as Tila Tequila and Ron Jeremy – saying something into a camera with a false background. (I’m assuming many of the people in the clips are celebrities of some sort as many say their names into the camera before their quick blurb.) Mogreet also appears to have a deal with the recently launched movie “The Love Guru” as it features several short clips from the flick.
Sending the clips is fairly easy. After selecting the clip, the sender must insert the mobile number for the clip to be sent to and the mobile number to be charged for the service. The sender can also insert their name as well as a message up to 90 characters. The first time a message is sent from a mobile number a confirmation code is sent to that number that must be returned to confirm that the cellphone number is indeed aware a message is being sent and charged to that number. Once confirmed, a text is sent to the destination number telling them that a video message is on its way, which is then followed by the actual message.
Video quality of the sent message was sufficient, though sound quality of the message sent varied depending on the quality of the speaker on the device. The test messages all appeared on both the sender and receiver handsets within a minute or less.
Mogreet claims the clips are priced at either 49 cents or 99 cents, though all of the ones I checked were of the 99-cent variety. The sender is also dinged for the text messages sent to confirm their phone number, while the receiver is dinged for two messages: the first being the notice that a mogreet is coming and the second for the actual message. The receiver is also charged for any data charges the mogreet incurs, which according to Mogreet’s site is generally between 75 kilobits and 125 kbs per message. The receiver of the mogreet is able to keep the message on their device for as long as they want.
I was unable to send a mogreet from any of the mobile handsets used for the test, and was unable to receive the video on the Samsung Ace. The message simply stated that Mogreet had not seen my device before and that their tech people were working on it. In Mogreet’s defense, the Ace is not on the company’s site as being supported by the service, though it does support the similar BlackJack models as well as around 70 devices. Mogreet also notes that the sender would not be charged for the undeliverable message.
The service is supported by the four nationwide operators, though for T-Mobile USA the Mogreet site claims support is for self-send only. Each mogreet is charged to the sender and appears on their wireless bill, which should be fun for kids with self-control problems and those on family plans who stumble onto the service. I can’t imagine the appeal of the service will last long, even for the most text-happy kid.
Overall the service has a modest gee-whiz factor that quickly wore off once I realized that each of these messages would cost $1 to send. While some off-deck applications seem to provide more value than for what they charge – see: Google Maps, which is free and indispensable – Mogreet’s video messaging service is a billing disaster waiting to happen.