GMA Network launches Video Messaging Service

GMA Network's latest mobile offering will enable Filipino users to view their favorite GMA news and entertainment shows even while on the go. Through a Video Message Service (VMS) application developed by Swedish mobile solutions provider Ironroad, iOS- and Android-based smartphone users will now be able to subscribe to video content of GMA shows that will be delivered straight to their mobile phones.
According to Abby Payuyo, corporate communications manager of GMA New Media, Inc., the application works just like the conventional Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) commonly offered by telecom firms —but without some of the latter's limitations. With the VMS application, videos are stored through a central server, which eliminates the need to store the videos in one's mobile phone and frees up needed storage capacities. "The idea is just like a peer-to-peer video messaging capability. The problem with MMS, though, is it has limitations in capacity," Payuyo explained. With the new service, users can choose from a variety of GMA shows such as primetime newscast 24 Oras, comedy show Bubble Gang, teleserye Munting Heredera and showbiz talk show StarTalk, among many others. In the future, users will also be able to receive personalized messages from their favorite Kapuso celebrities. Users can also subscribe to a certain show or celebrity they are following, where a new video will be delivered to their inbox every day. "The duration (of the video) is about two minutes per clip. For news, videos containing the headlines of the day are delivered. For teleserye and other shows, the highlights of the previous episode are the ones shown," Payuyo said. As an introductory offer along with Globe Telecom, the initial provider of the service, users will be able to avail of the service for free during the entire month of June. By July, users will be charged a minimal rate of P5 for every video downloaded or delivered to the device. Payuyo said they are working to include other telecom providers in the service, so that subscribers of Smart and Sun Cellular can also enjoy having GMA shows on their mobile phones. She said VMS applications for the BlackBerry and Symbian OS (Nokia) are also in the works, and will be made available in the coming months. As an aside, the application can also be used by users to record their own videos and send them over to contacts who also have VMS installed on their mobile phones. To start availing the service, users would just have to download the VMS application in the Apple App Store and the Android Marketplace, and register their Globe mobile phones through the application. — TJD, GMA News