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MMS Group Text on Android stops working

Cah2035

So for a long time, with multiple phones from different manufacturers (android), I have had group text issues where after several messages, mine fail to send and incoming messages are received as indivudal texts by the sending contact as download but wont download.

This may or may not have to do with messaging users with iphones, I cant say for sure since I have never had a group with only android users.

For the life of me I cannot find any legit answers online. I suspect that this has to do with the service, that there is some sort of message cap on MMS and service gets suspended if it detects to much traffic.

So what is the deal here? This sort of issue is debilitating and makes it impossible to have group chats. I sit here seeing downloadable messages come through and people are wondering why I am not asking, so I avoid group chats as much as possible.

Accepted answers

quarksoft

Just ran across a possible solution (have not fully tested it yet but wanted to spread the word here just in case):

Log in to your Verizon account. Select "Account" at the top of the screen-"My Plan"-"Blocks." After selecting the appropriate line, select "block services"- then toggle on "block picture and video messaging." After saving, wait a minute or two then toggle it back to off. After everything saves, a phone restart may or may not be necessary.

Saw this in another post and someone said it fixed the issue for them.

All comments

Cah2035

Also before it is suggested, please do not ask me to play around with my settings in my phone (toggle airplane mode, change network settings, etc.) This is NOT an issue with the phone settings. This is a NETWORK issue, which is why I am posting on the Verizon forum and not an android forum.

Verizon_Support

Cah2035, thank you so much for reaching out. We want to make sure that you can send group messages without any issues. So we can get a better look at the details, please provide us with a Private Note. We will be standing by ready to assist.

-Kevin

TM701

I have had and continue to experience this. This has been ongoing for a very long time. I would say since at least a year ago. So like....since summer of 2022. Or....even longer than that. It took me a long time to figure out what caused it.
And yes...customer support wants you to reset network settings, restart phone, turn airplane mode on and off, etc. I told the last rep as soon as they answered...."Listen...I don't mean to be rude, but do not have me reset, restart, etc....I'm wayyyyy beyond that". They couldn't understand what I was trying to tell them. So then I said this: "Imagine you and 6 of your closest friends are on a group chat. Imagine 2 of you are Android (Verizon) and 5 are iPhone. Imagine all of you are playing trivia, asking and answering, back and forth to the group. Are you imagining? Okay. Now imagine, after a bunch of texts have been sent and received, that ONLY you and the OTHER Android user (the two Android users), can no longer send or receive group texts from any of the group. Its ONLY the Android users. Now imaging that lasts for 10-30 minutes and then it magically gets fixed. Still imagining? Now imagine it happens tomorrow under the same circumstances, and then the next day, then the next and the next and EVERY TIME you get in a "high volume" group chat. And its only the Android guys (who BOTH are Verizon). And imagine its happened like this for the past year. And imagine how, every time it happens, your members of your group chat wonder why you all of the sudden quit messaging. It's like Verizon puts you in 'MMS Timeout' " It gets very frustrating. I have a trouble ticket in for this. # *****. I 've spoke with Level 2 support about this twice. They are baffled. I feel your pain. Everything happens EXACTLY as you described it.

runninbear5

Yes! I have been experiencing the same issue since November over the use of two different phones. I switched to Verizon in November and right away I noticed the issue. On my old phone, Pixel 6, the issue happened almost daily, anytime a group chat I was in picked up. And your description of "MMS timeout" is a perfect description. Now on my Samsung S22 the issue has happened less but it still does occur. It is hard to judge if it is truly less frequent tho as I have switched away from using texting for group chats because of the issue. But it happened again today. The only thing I can think of for what happened today is that my phone was connected to a 4g network at the time. As soon as it switched back to 5g I was finally able to download the messages. I know my pixel only could connect to 4g and thinking back, I could believe my Samsung was only having the issue when it was connected to 4g. Is this something you have also noticed? Or does it happen when connected to 5g as well?

I have been trying to debug this for so long so I am curious if our problems are similar and to see what verizon says

TM701

One of the customer service reps went down the path of 4G/5G. But, ya know...I'm never on 5G where my house sits. It's always 4G, and the problem comes and goes while on 4G. Meaning, sometimes it works with 4G and sometimes it doesn't. The ticket I put in is still showing open. They "escalated" the ticket and gave me a new ticket number. I think I'll call into today to check the status of it.

The only thing I can confirm, is that it is Verizon/Android. And it happens in the midst of large volume group message exchanges. 4 of the 7 of the members are Apple. 3 are Android. 2 of the Android are Verizon. The 2 Android/Verizon users are who get put in "MMS Timeout". Every time, it is only us 2. The 2 of us have Samsungs, coincidentally, but I don't think Samsung is one of the common denominators. Just Verizon + Android. Good luck. Save a link to this chat. I'll update when I get info back on the trouble ticket.

Slkruger33

I've been having this issue too and it's only the high volume group texts and it does it constantly. It'll fix itself, then as soon as multiple texts start coming in, it pauses again. I literally need it to stop. I have to be able to contact this group. I'm so incredibly frustrated with it.

everclear0411

You aren't alone. There are loads of us with this issue. Tech can't help. I'm contacting corporate and I suggest you do the same. Then I'm going to have to switch providers.

DonSaint

I was googling this issue and stumbled on this thread and everything you all are saying is SPOT ON! This has been happening since 2019 for me. I have talked to Verizon NUMEROUS times to find a solution and of course, enough time passes and the messages are all pushed through and they think they fixed it. Infuriating. We are looking into another carrier because, at this point, the phone isn't functional for simple text messages. I use group texts for work and I can't be held up daily. I just wanted to say thank you for the validation because it seemed like my coworker and I (Verizon Androids) were the only ones. It's a shame because we both just got two brand-new Samsung phones but other carriers have them too.

KeiBis

I have been dealing with this issue for some time now. Actually, since I switched Verizon. So over it. Happening to me at this very moment.

Katmeat

I too am having a major issue with certain group texts with my Galaxy S24 U on Verizon. There is one particular group of 10 members (in a high school car pool) that only works sporadically, if it all. I miss out on almost all critical text messages from the group members. There is little rhyme or reason with the outages, but it appears that it is mostly the Apple users. I have tried everything, resetting the phone and messaging apps, using different messaging apps, etc, and nothing helps.

MuellerAndrewRay

I would like to understand what the problem is, tbh. Is it only with Galaxy phones? Is it only with Android phones? Is it all phones?

Verizon_Support

Oh, no! Dealing with messaging issues can be frustrating, especially when it affects your group texts. Verizon is here to help.

If you encounter any tech issues in the future, do not hesitate to use our Troubleshooting Assistant for further support: https://www.verizonwireless.com/support/troubleshooting/.

We sent you a Private Message. Please review at your earliest convenience.

~Gilbert

perhansa13

I also am having the same issue in our group mms chat of 4 people. 2 users have iPhones, the other two of us freeze during activity. I have a Note 20, he has a Pixel. So it's not only Samsung phones, it's just Android in general. Is there any way the iPhone users can be restricting the chat on their end?

Verizon_Support

@perhansa13
wrote: I have a Note 20, he has a Pixel. So it's not only Samsung phones, it's just Android in general.

Sorry you've been having issues with the group texting. To get a few more details, is this only happening in group chats where multimedia is being shared? Do just text based group chats have issues? No issues with texting/messaging people one on one?

-John

asl479

I'm experiencing this issue just now, for the first time. I have a Google Pixel 5 and I've been hesitating to upgrade because it has been working fine for me otherwise and I'm not looking to spend money on a new phone. I can't tell from the responses if a newer phone is the answer necessarily. This is super frustrating! Missing some important messages and trying to make plans.

Verizon_Support

We know the importance of managing your service, especially if you are encountering group messaging issues. Verizon is here to help.

Let's gather more info. When did the issue start? What recent changes have you made? What exactly happens when using Android in a group text? Aside from the group messaging, any other problems?

~Gilbert

MuellerAndrewRay

A newer phone isn't going to help. Verizon support isn't going to help either. It is platitudes to make people who are searching 'feel' like there is a solution. They don't have one. They will make you jump through hoops and do stupid stuff that doesn't even relate to the problem. Then they will tell you stuff like "sometimes it takes 24-48 hours" and things like that to put you off and hope you don't call back.

everclear0411

100%. Several of us have been dealing with executive support and just got what appeared to be a higher level of brush off.

I don't doubt the engineers we spoke with actually tried, but the end game was "sorry not sorry"

rc4444

My wife and I both started having this problem this morning (2/29/2024). We both have the Samsung A51. We are unable to receive texts in a group text coming from iPhones (maybe), but also from my daughter who has a Pixel. So maybe it's from texts coming from outside of Verizon? Not sure. I can see her texts in the group chat and she can see mine, but we can't see others.

everclear0411

Several of us have done different levels of play testing this both with and without Verizon engineers.

The consensus is that it is likely a Google and Android issue, but Verizon to date refuses to bring the issue to Google or the Verizon team. You can contact Google executive support by emailing the CEO. Maybe that will get something done. Contacting Google is about as effective as screaming into the abyss.

Aspenrt78

Just started having this issue on my brand new s24 Ultra. Unlike most I haven't used group messages and the only MMS I'm having trouble with is those coming from iphones. So I do believe it is related to iphones. The other strange thing I noticed is that under the updates tab in settings it shows that Verizon pushed an update to my phone yesterday without any permission or notification. So I think they are randomly testing new firmware under our noses hoping we won't find out. I have all my automatic updates turned off so how they were able to push one to my phone is a mystery. It just really pi55es me off that there was no notification of such update or permission asked!

quarksoft

Just ran across a possible solution (have not fully tested it yet but wanted to spread the word here just in case):

Saw this in another post and someone said it fixed the issue for them.

Verizon_Support

It's worrying to see you are experiencing issues with your group messages and we are here to help. Please tell us, when did this start? Does this happen with all group messages? ~Geo

Verizon_Support

Oh, no! Dealing with group messaging issues can be frustrating, especially when they stop working. Verizon is here to help.

What recent changes have you made? Aside from the group messaging, any other problems? Who else is experiencing this dilemma?

~Gilbert

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