GroupMe Blog

Kobayashi sets a record at the GroupMe Grill Last weekend at...

stevespillman — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 16:17:35 -0400

Kobayashi sets a record at the GroupMe Grill

Last weekend at SXSW, at our GroupMe Grill in Austin, TX, world champion eater Takeru Kobayashi beat the Recordsetter world record for most grilled cheese sandwiches eaten in a minute. He ate 13. Here is some close-up video proof from our friends at Serve. Enjoy!

GroupMe Partners Up to Introduce a New Generation to Tech Jobs...

stevespillman — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 10:30:50 -0500

GroupMe Partners Up to Introduce a New Generation to Tech Jobs like QA

Today I’m excited to launch SummerQAmp, an initiative to train a new workforce in high-tech skills, specifically Quality Assurance, and help create tech jobs for American youth. Developed as a commitment to the White House’s Summer Jobs+ initiative, the movement is being led by me, Aneesh Chopra, former CTO of the White House, Kevin Haggard, Vice President of Quality Engineering at Gilt Groupe, Jason Baptiste, CEO of OnSwipe and musician Jon Bon Jovi.

I was inspired to develop this program because of the wonderful experience I had working with the QA team during my time at Gilt Groupe and the success of our QA team here at GroupMe. QA teams are extremely important as they ensure that we, the developers, can deliver high quality software after the codebase becomes extremely complex. Automated testing only covers so much and QA professionals are the final line of defense in those harder-to-test environments.

I also learned that, for many people, QA wasn’t a job you can train for in school. Some QA managers had engineering backgrounds, but many others had no training in the field. I often thought about where one could even get the training and what it would entail. During my career, I’ve watched some entry-level QA managers go on to become really good software engineers. Over time, I realized that this is both a potential career path and a starting point for those who may want to be software engineers.

We practice what we preach here at GroupMe. We have a great QA manager named Tobias McGuigan, but realized he was having trouble testing our application to run on four smartphone platforms by himself. We decided to take on a QA intern to grow the team. I encouraged my brother Mike, who had helped me to test my past startups, to consider the role. Mike eventually joined and quickly came up to speed with our QA processes. He now knows exactly how our applications should perform as well as our developers do. Mike has far exceeded our expectations and is providing tremendous value to the company.

Recently, my co-founder Jared and I had an opportunity to dine with Jon Bon Jovi and members of his team. The topic of job creation came up and I told Jon my story and my belief in QA as a source of jobs. He pushed me to bring this message to others and introduced me to Aneesh Chopra, who was CTO of the White House at the time. Aneesh thought the idea fit perfectly into the White House’s Summer Jobs+ initiative to create more jobs through technology and came on board to help create the program. Thus, SummerQAmp was born.

SummerQAmp is more than a movement to create internships, though. We’re also going to work with Neeru Khosla and the CK-12 Foundation to design an online course that introduces SummerQAmp participants to software development. In addition, we’ll be developing an educational genome that can help direct students down the right path to learn more about different software careers (e.g., IT, engineering, QA, etc.). When we launch this online educational resource later this year, we will be leveraging the power of the Web to reach hundreds of thousands of people who are interested in QA and software development.

I’ve already reached out to many of my colleagues at tech companies and venture capital firms to get them involved. In addition to GroupMe and Gilt Groupe, companies like Onswipe, eBay, the CK-12 Foundation, and Boxee have already pledged to offer QA internships this summer. A number of other tech companies, investors and non-profits, such as JIBE, Knewton, SV Angel and Fiver Children’s Foundation, are helping to develop and guide the growth of the SummerQAmp movement.

Our goal is to create 1,000 internship positions across the software and mobile app industry and we hope that many more tech companies will join us in this initiative to create a new workforce of QA managers right here in the U.S.

To join the roster of companies that are committing to create tech jobs in America this summer, visit www.summerqamp.org to learn more about the SummerQAmp movement and to sign the pledge to create a QA internship at your organization.

- Steve Martocci, Co-founder, GroupMe

GroupMe for iPhone and Android 3.3 Just in time for the madness...

stevespillman — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 09:51:13 -0500

GroupMe for iPhone and Android 3.3

Just in time for the madness of SXSW, we’re unleashing a brand new version of GroupMe for iPhone and Android, with some long-awaited updates and awesome new features. It just keeps getting better!

Let’s get right to it. Here’s what’s new.

Introducing Open Groups

Open groups are a new way to start conversations on GroupMe. They’re just like any other group, except you don’t have to add anyone to them—anyone you know can join.

They’re best when you know what you want to talk about, but not who would want to talk about it with you. You can choose to notify just your GroupMe contacts, or send the URL out on Twitter or Facebook and see who joins the conversation.

Whether it’s an impromptu book club, karaoke crew, pick-up soccer group, or fan club, open groups make it easy to talk about the things you like with anyone you know. Try it out now—it’s as simple as flipping the switch.

GroupMe in Your Language

In the seven months since we launched international support for GroupMe, we’ve been thrilled to hear from people using our app to chat with their friends all over on the planet.

As part of our mission to make GroupMe available to everyone, today we’re launching the GroupMe iPhone and Android apps in 14 new languages: Spanish, French, German, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Dutch, Polish, Portuguese (both Portuguese and Brazilian), Russian, and Chinese (Simplified & Traditional).

If your language still isn’t represented, request it in our Feature Requests forum! We’d love to hear from you.

Etc.

The new Discover tab makes it easy to find open groups from your friends.
Live typing notifications (iPhone only)
Lots of bug fixes and UI improvements

The new GroupMe app is available immediately for iPhone and Android. Download now and let us know what you think!

GroupMe at SXSW That’s right—Team GroupMe is headed back...

stevespillman — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 17:59:55 -0500

GroupMe at SXSW

That’s right—Team GroupMe is headed back to Austin next week for another awesome weekend at SXSW Interactive. We’ve got so much to share with everyone so without further ado, here’s a few announcements about what we’re planning this year:

Start your SXSW group now!

If you were at SXSW last year, you already know that GroupMe is the perfect way to stay in touch with your crew on the ground in Austin. It’s that time again—start your group now to help you start planning, and you can keep using it to share notes on the best parties, events, and happenings when you’re hanging out in Austin next week.

Plus, if you start your group on our special SXSW featured page, or from the Featured tab in the app, you’ll receive some exclusive info and updates in your group, and you’ll also be entered to win VIP tickets to our party. More on that later. #)

Major Rager Part Deux

The Major Rager is back. Last year, we had a really fun time at Cedar Street Courtyard, celebrating the end of a great weekend. This year, we’re pumping up the volume for an even bigger party.

The party is co-sponsored by Serve from American Express, and features DJ sets from The Hood Internet, Nancy Whang (of LCD Soundsystem), and COMA (Kompakt Records, Ger) in their U.S. premiere.

It’s going to be amazing. RSVP here.

GroupMe Grill

It’s back, and better than ever! GroupMe users can hang out, eat free grilled cheese, and drink free beer at the GroupMe Grill, right across from the convention center. It’s on Trinity and 3rd, and we’ll be there from 12-5 p.m. on March 10-12. Come by! We can’t wait to see you. Lots of improvements from last year, and maybe a few surprises, are in store…

We’ve got more to announce very soon—stay tuned! In the meantime, start your group and we’ll see you in Austin!

GroupMe for Windows Phone It’s back and better than ever!...

stevespillman — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 09:00:00 -0500

GroupMe for Windows Phone

It’s back and better than ever! Today, we’re thrilled to announce a completely revamped version of our GroupMe app for Windows Phone. We’ve been working closely with our new parent company, Microsoft, on developing this app, and we think the result is the best way to chat with everyone you know from your Windows Phone.

The GroupMe experience you know and love has been translated to the functionality and design of the Mango OS and Metro design framework, so the app will feel native to seasoned Windows Phone users. Start groups, send direct messages, share photos, and check out featured groups just like on our other smartphone apps—it’s all here.

But that’s not all! There are some great new features that take advantage of the new Mango OS. GroupMe has fast app switching enabled, live tile notifications of new messages, and syncs with the Windows Phone address book. Plus, you can pin a specific group to start, giving you fast access to the groups you access most often—and the tile updates with new messages and photos.

We think you’ll love this new app, and can’t wait for you to try it! It’s available for free in the Windows Marketplace, so download it now and let us know what you think!

GroupMe for iPhone and Android 3.2 It’s a holiday miracle!...

stevespillman — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 11:59:31 -0500

GroupMe for iPhone and Android 3.2

It’s a holiday miracle! We just released our new iPhone and Android apps to their respective markets. There are lots of little tweaks to make the GroupMe app faster and more fun, and we think you’ll agree it’s the best version yet. Here’s what’s new!

Likes

We’ve heard from a lot of you that while your GroupMe chats are hilarious and fun, they move so quickly that it’s sometimes hard to remember all the best things that have happened. Some of the best messages get lost in the shuffle. That’s why today, we’re introducing Likes.

Now, when someone in one of your groups posts something you like, you can tap the message and then tap “Like”. They’ll get a notification that you liked their message, and it’ll be saved for you in your own personal list of Likes from all your groups. Plus, the entire group will see a running total of the number of people who liked each message inline.

Team GroupMe has been using Likes for the last few weeks, and we can guarantee that they’re really fun—it’s a whole new dimension on top of the GroupMe experience.

A note about conference calling

The best thing about GroupMe is the way people use it. We’ve seen extraordinary use cases that continue to inspire us. From baby deliveries to bible study groups, and the 11% of groups that are used for keeping families close, we’ve see GroupMe help all types of people.

As the service continues to evolve, it’s important that we focus on and enhance the features that people use most. GroupMe messaging has helped bring people closer together across the globe. In fact, push messaging within the app recently exceeded total text messages across our network.

As we continue to focus on our core functionality of group messaging, we believe it’s important to sunset features that are not widely utilized. Starting January 1, GroupMe will disable the conference calling feature by default across the network. We’re working to improve the overall GroupMe experience for our users and it’s important for us to stay focused on what we do best: helping people stay connected with their real life network through group messaging.

There’s good news, though: if you have made a conference call in the last month, you will still be able to make conference calls on your existing group number indefinitely. Additionally, if you start a group and find that you could use the benefits of conference calling, you can email us at conference@groupme.com and we’ll set your group up with a calling-enabled number.

Questions? We’re always here to chat with you — just send us an email at support@groupme.com.

That’s all for now! There’s lots more cool stuff coming soon, so stay tuned—we can’t wait to show you all the new things we’ve been working on.

Now, go ahead and get the new GroupMe app for iPhone or Android! From all of us at GroupMe, happy holidays, and a happy new year!

Happy Holidays from GroupMe! Whether you’re spending this...

stevespillman — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 09:59:54 -0500

Happy Holidays from GroupMe!

Whether you’re spending this holiday season at home with family or halfway across the world, GroupMe is here to help you stay in touch with the people who really matter to you.

Last month, you may remember that we launched a Thanksgiving featured group designed to help us give back to our community. With your help, we were able to give thousands of dollars to help feed families in need in our hometown of New York City.

We were so happy with the last time that we’re bringing it back for this holiday season. For each new group created on our special Happy Holidays page or in the Featured tab on your GroupMe app between now and New Year’s Day, we’ll donate $1 to the Food Bank For New York City, for up to 2,000 groups. For every $1 donated 5 meals can be provided to New Yorkers in need. With your help, we’ll feed thousands of hungry families in New York this winter.

Try starting a group there now and adding the people you’ll be seeing this holiday season. Whether you’re headed home to visit with family or hosting some friends where you live, you’ll all be able to stay in touch easier than ever before. Coordinate flight arrivals, chat about weather reports, and plan who’s bringing what to your celebrations. It’s easier than ever!

If you’ll be far from the ones you love, a group is the perfect way to stay in touch from all over the world. Share photos and stories from past holidays, or count down to the New Year together from opposite coasts—in real time. You’ll feel like you’re close together, no matter how far apart you are.

But no matter what you talk about, you’ll be helping people in need. Start your group right now on our Happy Holidays page or in the Featured tab on your GroupMe app.

From all of us at GroupMe, happy holidays!

Happy Thanksgiving from GroupMe! Whether you’re travelling...

stevespillman — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 15:24:54 -0500

Happy Thanksgiving from GroupMe!

Whether you’re travelling thousands of miles to see your family or just shopping near home, GroupMe is your ideal companion this holiday weekend.

This year, we’re using this holiday as an opportunity to give back to our beloved New York City. For each new group created on our special Thanksgiving page or in the Featured tab on your GroupMe app between now (11/22) and Sunday night (11/28), we’ll donate $1 to the Food Bank For New York City, for up to 2000 groups. For every $1 donated 5 meals can be provided to New Yorkers in need. With your help, we’ll help feed thousands of hungry families in New York this Thanksgiving.

Try starting a group there now and adding everyone who’ll be at your Thanksgiving feast this year. Whether they’re coming from near or far, you’ll be in control of who’s arriving when and who’s bringing what. No more worrying about coming up short on ingredients—if you’re short on cranberries, just send a message to the group and see who can pick some up.

If this weekend is more about shopping for you, there’s no better way to coordinate Black Friday than with a group. Get your shopping crew together and you’ll be able to compare deals from across the mall or across the country. Or, just start a bragging contest by sharing photos of the deals you snagged.

But no matter what you talk about, you’ll be helping people in need. Start your group right now on our Thanksgiving page or in the Featured tab on your GroupMe app.

From all of us at GroupMe, happy Thanksgiving!

GroupMe 3.0 for BlackBerry It’s finally here! A few weeks...

stevespillman — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 12:24:48 -0400

GroupMe 3.0 for BlackBerry

It’s finally here!

A few weeks ago, iPhone and Android users were treated to our 3.0 update, bringing Questions, Direct Messages, and a new visual style to the core GroupMe experience. Today, we’re thrilled to bring that same awesome experience to the BlackBerry.

On the new app, users can create new groups and questions with people in their address book, as well as other people they know on GroupMe. With the new API, users should notice a faster feel to the overall app experience.

The UI has been completely overhauled, from the list of chats to your list of contacts and much more. There’s a new ribbon of buttons at the top of the app that lets you start a group, Question, or Direct Message quickly, just like in our other apps. Picture sharing and downloading is much faster. It now works on BlackBerry OS 7.

Basically, everything is faster, prettier and easier to use. You’re going to love it.

Get GroupMe 3.0 now in App World.

Or, download it directly to your BlackBerry here.

Dearest GroupMe Groupies, We have very exciting news to share....

stevespillman — Sun, 21 Aug 2011 18:59:00 -0400

Dearest GroupMe Groupies,

We have very exciting news to share. Today, we have entered into an agreement to be acquired by Skype. Over the last few months, we had been in talks with Skype that started with discussions about potential commercial partnerships. As we got to know the core Skype team better, though, and as our conversations evolved, it quickly became evident that our visions were perfectly aligned. Both companies are focused on changing the way the world communicates, and helping people stay in touch with the people they really know. With a shared vision—an ambitious one—we decided our efforts to own real-time communications and the real life network could be best executed as one company.

This has been a remarkable year for GroupMe, and we believe that this is a big win. And not just a big win for GroupMe and our amazing investors, but also for New York City. As part of the deal, GroupMe will remain in New York, team intact, working on our standalone application. The major difference will be that we will now have access to Skype’s 175 million monthly connected users. 175 million people. That’s a very big deal.

When we first started GroupMe, we set out to achieve two major goals. The first was to solve a very simple problem we had as individuals: how do we stay in touch and coordinate with our friends better in real-time? The second was a bit bigger: how can we change the way people across the globe communicate and get together better in real life? We solved problem #1, and our efforts alongside Skype will accelerate the execution of problem #2 tenfold. This is truly a once in a lifetime opportunity.

With all of this excitement, we want to take a moment to thank you, our amazing users. Because of your excitement about GroupMe, your inexhaustible support, and your invaluable feedback, we have been able to make GroupMe into what it is today. We simply could not have done this without you. From all of us here at GroupMe— thank you so much.

We’re going to keep working hard on making GroupMe the best way to keep in touch with your real life network. We still have a long way to go with our product and vision, and we can’t wait to show you where we’re going next.

Love,

Team GroupMe

Introducing GroupMe 3.0 It’s a very exciting day here at...

stevespillman — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 09:59:00 -0400

Introducing GroupMe 3.0

It’s a very exciting day here at GroupMe. Thanks to the invaluable feedback we’ve received from our users over the last few months, we have a slew of new features today that make GroupMe the easiest way to start conversations and keep in touch with your real life network.

There’s a lot of new stuff to celebrate, so let’s get to the point. Here’s what’s new!

Questions (Beta)

Today, we’re releasing a new kind of conversation you can start on GroupMe. It’s as simple as asking a question.
Use it to plan a real-life meetup, chat about something with your friends in real time, or whatever else you want!
You can direct your question to just a few people, an entire group, or everyone you know. You can even broadcast it to Twitter or Facebook and let the world respond.
We’re so excited about this feature that we can’t contain it all to this post. Please read more about Questions here.

Direct Messages

Now, you can send a message to another GroupMe user, because sometimes, you don’t need to say it to the whole group.  Just tap on a user’s avatar anywhere in the app, and you can have a conversation with them without ever leaving the app.
Today, you can send and receive Direct Messages from the iPhone and Android apps. It’s coming soon to our other platforms, including the web.

Website

Now everything you can do on the app is possible on the web. Start and manage groups, send messages, share photos, ask questions, and more, all from the comfort of your desk. You asked for it, so we built it.
Plus, it’s optimized for mobile browsers, so if your smartphone doesn’t already have a GroupMe app available, you can still chat for free wherever you are.
On top of all that, we have a new About page, a new Jobs page (apply now!) and new pages for all of our apps. It’s like a brand new website!

Who You Know

To date, you have been able to view the phone numbers of anyone in your groups. As GroupMe has grown and our users have discovered awesome new reasons to start groups, we’ve heard from some people that you don’t always want to share their phone number in their groups.
So starting today, your phone number is kept private from other group members.  The only way you can see another group member’s phone number in the app is if they’re already in your phone contacts. Of course, if you need to know it, you can always ask them for it by sending a Direct Message in our app. It’s that easy!

International Support

The GroupMe app is now available worldwide on iPhone, Android, BlackBerry, and Windows Phone 7. Full SMS chat support is currently limited to the United States, but users in other countries can use GroupMe for free with our app or on our website. Today, GroupMe apps are available in over 90 countries.

New Apps and More

In addition to all the awesome new features described above, the new versions of our iPhone and Android apps also feature a gorgeous new interface design. They’re faster than ever and better looking to boot.
If you didn’t see the news last month, we have a brand new app for Windows Phone 7 that’s just getting started. Try it out!
The retooled “News” tab in the app now tells you everything you need to know about GroupMe.
There are so many optimizations and detailed improvements in our apps and website that we couldn’t possibly list them all here.

We’re so excited for you to start playing with the new apps and features! So what are you waiting for? Here are a few things you should do right now:

Download the latest version of our app. Ask a question of your friends! Send a direct message to someone you’re in a group with! Chat with your groups from our website! Let us know what you think on Twitter or Facebook! And if you have any problems or questions, feel free to send us an email.

Enjoy!

Love,

Team GroupMe

Introducing Questions (Beta) Today, we’re excited to...

stevespillman — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 09:58:00 -0400

Introducing Questions (Beta)

Today, we’re excited to introduce a new type of chat you can start on GroupMe. It’s as simple as asking a question to spark a conversation.

As we’ve heard from our users over the last few months, sometimes starting a group feels like too much pressure. You may know what you want to talk about, but not necessarily who you want to talk with. Maybe you want to ping a few friends to see who’s up for dinner. Or maybe you just have a burning question you’d like all your friends to answer.

That’s why we built Questions. It’s the easiest way to start a conversation with whomever you want. Direct it to just a few people, or to all of your groups. You can even broadcast your question on Twitter or Facebook.  Everyone you ask has a chance to decide whether they’d like to join the discussion, or just comment on the question without receiving everyone’s updates.

You can use it to plan a real-life meetup:

Anyone want to see a movie tonight?
What is everyone doing this weekend?

Or to chat about something with your friends in real time:

Is anyone else watching this game?
What’s the best restaurant for a date downtown?

Or even let your friends come to you.

I’m in Brooklyn. Who else is here?

We think of questions as a lightweight, fun companion to groups. It’s the fastest way to start chatting with your real life network.

At launch, you can ask questions from iPhone, Android, and the web. Anyone can answer a question and participate in the discussion, either on our website, on an app, or via SMS.

The uses are limited only by your imagination… and we can’t wait to see what you ask. It’s a brand-new beta feature, so we’re looking forward to seeing what people really do with it and where it goes next.

So what are you waiting for? Ask your first question now!

New Apps Feature GroupMe Two months ago, we announced the...

stevespillman — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 10:31:00 -0400

New Apps Feature GroupMe

Two months ago, we announced the GroupMe Client Library, which lets mobile developers easily incorporate GroupMe functionality into their apps. Since then, we’ve been working with a limited selection of partners to bring our group messaging experience to more people through third-party mobile apps.

Now, we’re proud to show off two apps with built-in GroupMe functionality that are launching today on the App Store.

First, check out the brand new Lollapalooza Official App for iPhone and Android. It lets Lollapalooza attendees look over the whole festival lineup, put together a personal schedule, and look over a comprehensive map of the grounds. And this year, it’s amazingly easy to start a group with your other friends who are going, with a dedicated GroupMe tab built into the bottom bar.

From that tab, it’s easy to start a Lollapalooza group from your phone contacts, see the ones you’ve already started, and send a text to the group or start a conference call with just a tap:

What’s more, there’s an easy way to open your Lollapalooza group in the GroupMe app, chat in-app, then switch back to the Lollapalooza app instantly. Check out this video we made showing just how easy it is to do:

Also launching today is the new Dexter app for iPhone and Android. Fans of the Showtime program love the app for its exclusive Dexter info, videos, games and more. Now, with GroupMe integration, Dexter fans will be able to chat about the show with their friends while they watch it—and have a chance to win special Dexter collectibles while doing it. Take a look:

These are just a few examples of how developers and partners can integrate GroupMe to help engage fans and make it easier for them to communicate with each other. If you have a great idea for integrating GroupMe into your app, read up on the Client Library or request an API key now. We can’t wait to work with you.

GroupMe Goes to College

michaelmizrahi — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 13:25:00 -0400

The following is a post written by our Community Management intern about our upcoming Campus Ambassador program.

Hey there—I’m Michael, the Community Management intern at GroupMe this summer!

Since I’ve been here, we’ve seen some remarkable cases of GroupMe in places that were never imagined. Examples like cancer support groups, neighborhood crime watches, and even tornado relief cases continue to motivate the team daily to keep building GroupMe to be the best it can.

Aside from the often awe-inspiring cases, there’s one place that GroupMe just seems to naturally fit in—the college campus.

Over the past year, I’ve had the chance to use GroupMe at school in many different ways:

Coordinating a team of 20 program directors during an 18-hour dance marathon that raised funds for a local children’s hospital.
Organizing group projects for class and finding those group members when meeting up in the library.
Staying in touch with roommates about buying groceries when someone makes a run to the store.
Communicating with members of the student clubs and organizations that I’m in for quick changes to meeting times and places.

Those are just a few examples of use cases, and we know there are many more out there. That’s why we’re starting a Campus Ambassador program to help bring GroupMe on campus to the next level.

Those selected as Campus Ambassadors will be our representatives on the front line of their campus. They’ll be publicizing GroupMe and helping new users and groups get started in a number of different areas. We’re ready to support those Ambassadors as much as possible - we’ll set up custom web pages, help plan promotions, and provide giveaways. We’ll even throw in lots of exclusive GroupMe swag! #)

We’ll tell you more about the details later. For now, we’re looking for motivated, creative, and passionate college students who understand the power of GroupMe to join us.

What’s more, the Ambassadors that do the best job on their campuses will be offered a paid internship at GroupMe HQ next summer—which, take my word for it, is amazing. Team GroupMe is constantly evolving, and the amount of creativity, skill, humor, and genius here is great.

If you fit the bill, or if you know someone who does, apply now. We can’t wait to meet you. The deadline for applications is July 31st!

GroupMe Preview for Windows Phone 7 is here We’re excited...

stevespillman — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 13:58:43 -0400

GroupMe Preview for Windows Phone 7 is here

We’re excited to announce that today, we’re launching our fourth major smartphone app: GroupMe for Windows Phone 7. Our users on Windows Phone devices have been asking us to build this app for months—it’s one of our most-requested features ever—and today we’re releasing it as a free download from the Windows Phone Marketplace.

Check it out. The screenshots speak for themselves:

We’re calling this release a preview because a few of our hallmark features aren’t in there yet (picture sharing, for example). That said, the app works wonderfully, so download away! Cut down on SMS fees with in-app messaging, and enjoy the easy group creation and management tools that our users already love on iPhone, Android, and BlackBerry.

We’re grateful to Microsoft for helping us kick off this app’s development at Mobile Acceleration Week. Furthermore, this app wouldn’t have been possible without our awesome HackNY intern. We’re proud to participate in HackNY’s stated mission of “federating the next generation of hackers for the New York innovation community,” and even more proud that we’ve produced something awesome together.

That’s all for now! Go ahead and download the new app here.

PS.: Stay tuned for lots of new features in the coming weeks… we’re very excited to show you what we’ve been working on!

Happy Independence Day from GroupMe Whether you’re headed...

stevespillman — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 17:32:00 -0400

Happy Independence Day from GroupMe

Whether you’re headed to the beach, to a barbecue, or just enjoying the extra time off at home, we’d like to wish our American users a very happy Fourth of July weekend.

And now that we think of it, getting together with friends and enjoying the summer sun sounds like a perfect time to share GroupMe with the people you love! Set one up with some friends this weekend and coordinate barbecue plans, or use it to stay in touch with new friends after the weekend is over. What you do with it is up to you.

Tell us about your Independence Day weekend with GroupMe (send an email to stories@groupme.com) and we’ll send a free GroupMe t-shirt to our favorite responses. It’s perfect for a hot summer’s day.

Enjoy your weekend!

Photo via gemstone on Flickr.

Let’s talk about Feature Requests! For the past few...

stevespillman — Fri, 24 Jun 2011 15:52:28 -0400

Let’s talk about Feature Requests!

For the past few months, we’ve been taking your feature requests and talking about them in a special section of our support site. After 44 requests and hundreds of votes, we’re going to take a minute today to talk about some of the most popular requests and how we’re addressing them. Exciting, right? Let’s do it!

Let users participate from the website

Our most-requested feature is the one we want the most too! This one is definitely planned. In fact, it’s being tested in our office right now. It looks awesome. So, yes. It’ll be here before you know it.

Build an app for Windows Phone 7

Oh yeah, it’s on its way. We love the Windows Phone 7 platform and have been hard at work developing an app (including in-app chat) for people who use it. It looks beautiful, and we think you are really going to love it. We’re starting to test it internally now, so look for it soon…

Only allow certain users to send messages within a group

This one’s tough. We know that a lot of people are using GroupMe to provide announcements, where only one or a few people actually send messages to the rest of the group. We also know that the way GroupMe works now doesn’t provide too many administrative options for people who want to create announcement-style groups like this.

For right now, we are still focused on creating the best possible experience for group messaging, the way we do it. We may build out an announcement product at some point in the future, but it’s not on the roadmap right now.

Groups far and wide are still using GroupMe for announcements, and loving it—email us if you have questions about using it for your group’s needs. We’re always happy to help! #)

Increase the group size limit

Not right now. Groups get really crazy when they get close to 25 people (our current limit). Phones don’t stop buzzing and people start complaining. It’s not a great user experience, and it increases the potential for spam and abuse.

That said, we’re always willing to raise group limits for people who use GroupMe responsibly! Just shoot us an email and we’ll help you out!

Allow users to participate via email

We think the new web interface will make up for this one.

Turn off message notifications when you want

Yes. This is in the works. We’ve supported this via text message for some time, but a much-improved mute function will be coming to the app before too long.

Make a landscape mode on the iPhone app

Yes! Next version.

Create a GroupMe API

We’re inching toward a true public API. For now, we have a really great client library for iOS and Android developers, giving you the ability to drop GroupMe functionality into your app in minutes. Read all about it here, and request your key here.

Well, that’s about it for now. What else do you want to see? Post your ideas in our Feature Requests forum; we’d love to hear from you!

Neighborhood watch group uses GroupMe to stop crimes as they...

stevespillman — Fri, 17 Jun 2011 14:43:40 -0400

Neighborhood watch group uses GroupMe to stop crimes as they happen

This week, we received an amazing email from Bob in Detroit, who is using GroupMe with his neighborhood watch group to stop crimes as they happen before the police can even jump into action.

We’re too amazed by this use case to try to summarize it any further, so we’re publishing it in its entirety. Please read his note:

Crime. Drugs. Murders. Corruption. Homelessness. Crappy schools. Everything you’ve heard about Detroit is true.

But there’s a lot you may not have heard about. Urban gardens. Bike culture. Green space development. A redeveloped riverfront. Growing neighborhoods. Arts. Music. Detroit’s a long way away from Shangri-la, but small pocket neighborhoods featuring low rent are attracting young professionals who want an urban experience.

My small neighborhood, Hubbard Farms, consists of about 250 homes and has been consistently solid for over a century. That’s not to say we haven’t had to face up to typical urban issues on a weekly basis. Car theft and B&E’s [Ed.: breaking and entering] are common. The infamous Hotel Yorba, a pay-by-the-week rental behemoth, sits at one end of the neighborhood. This is the last chance for most of the people there to have a roof over their heads. Many are fine citizens. But once in a while, you get some meatball who makes or draws trouble.

The neighborhood has a well-used listserv but email communication is not the best way to communicate emergencies. We wanted to reach each other faster, and GroupMe was our answer with group texting.

Since March, we’ve been able to stop a home invasion, interrupt a car theft in progress, and snap a clear photograph of a vagrant chucking bricks through picture windows, all due to our ability to amass a large number of persons very quickly to the scene of the action.

GroupMe has provided a sense of empowerment in our community. We always know we have dozens of eyes and ears on the street. And if there is trouble, we know our neighbors are just a text message away. Detroit has a long way to go, but with communities using technology that supports the more positive efforts, we are just that much closer to where we all want to see things go. Better.

Bob

Thanks, Bob. We’re humbled and inspired by your story.

As always, we want to hear how you are using GroupMe in your everyday life. Send us an email at stories@groupme.com.

Photo via bbcworldservice on Flickr.

The NBA Finals on GroupMe: Almost a Record-Breaker

stevespillman — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 14:15:06 -0400

On Sunday night, we saw a huge traffic spike in groups across the U.S. during the last game of the NBA Finals, peaking during the last hour of the game. In fact, near the end of the game, the count of messages per hour was nearing 3 times average hourly levels. Check out the chart:

(all times EDT)

The spike was so dramatic and pronounced that we nearly assumed it was a record.

A search of our database, though, revealed an even busier hourlong period on a different Sunday night a few weeks prior. On Sunday, May 1, the 11PM EDT hour was even higher, well above 3 times average traffic, and lightyears away from the rest of the pack. So what happened then?

It was the precise hour of President Obama’s press conference announcing the death of Osama bin Laden. Talk about a newsworthy event.

We’re thrilled that people nationwide are using GroupMe to talk about exciting moments in the news as they happen with their closest friends and family, and we look forward to seeing this record broken again and again over the coming months.

Our office is open! Well, technically, we moved in here two...

stevespillman — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 12:07:48 -0400

Our office is open!

Well, technically, we moved in here two months ago, but our new place is finally finished and ready to show off! Today, you have three chances to see it.

First and foremost, if you’re in New York, our office will be open from 2-5PM today as a part of Walkabout NYC. Come see us! We’re at 26 West 17th Street, on the 10th floor. Not everyone is here, but you know what? We’ll have fun anyway.

If you can’t make it in person, you have to check out this amazing video made by our lead designer, Kevin David Crowe. It chronicles our adventures moving into this office and moving stuff around, in a time-lapse that spans over a month.

Finally, in case you missed it, check out our episode of TechCrunch Cribs, which came out earlier this week. MG Siegler¹ really knocked it out of the park, and it was fun having him here.

See you around the office!

¹Yes, we know that was Jason Kincaid. It was a joke. Guess you had to be there.