Kirusa, which sells Voice SMS services and develops mobile value added services, in partnership with Tetco-Voxpilot, which specialises in voice/video/data convergence, has announced what it claims is the worlds first Video SMS product. Kirusa says that Video SMS is the first in a series of 3G initiatives it is developing as an extension to its current Voice SMS offering.
The Kirusa Video SMS application enables users to send, forward and reply to Video SMS messages, and also includes group Video SMS messaging capabilities. Kirusa says that Video SMS is a 3G service, based on video calling, and is used to send short video clips. The Video SMS application allows people to send live video via an SMS message.
A mobile subscriber sends a Video SMS message, similar to the way in which he or she would send a voice SMS message. To use the service, the user dials the * (Star) key, followed by the recipients mobile number from a 3G phone, and chooses to make a video call. The camera is then activated, allowing the subscriber to record a live video message. After finishing the recording, the subscriber may drop the video call, or review and re-record the video SMS message. The Video SMS message is sent to the recipient as an SMS notification with an embedded DirectListen number, which, when dialled to make a video call, takes the recipient directly to the Video SMS message he has received. After viewing the message, the recipient can reply to or forward the Video SMS message.
Kirusa operates worldwide. Its KV.SMS Voice SMS solution is deployed with more than 25 operators around the world.