Verizon blocks messages in old Message+ app as it pushes users to Google Messages

Ben Schoon | Dec 9 2024 - 10:15 am PT

The day has arrived, as Verizon has officially shut down its Message+ app on Android in favor of Google Messages, but users aren’t happy about the change, especially as the old app has blocked access to messages entirely.

Over the past few months, Verizon has been moving towards shutting down its SMS/RCS app, Verizon Message+, in favor of pushing customers to use Google Messages. The change has been communicated, and was even pushed back by a month to give customers additional time to make the switch.

Now, it’s officially happened.

Verizon has fully shut down Message+ as of today, with even the online support pages for the app having been removed as pointed out by Droid-Life. Some pages have been deleted entirely, while others no direct to a “no longer supported” page which, in part, says:

Verizon Messages (Message+) is no longer supported. For Android™ devices, Verizon recommends switching to Google Messages as the replacement app for messaging.

Verizon also directly mentions that SMS/MMS messages from the app are still stored on the device and can be accessed by other SMS apps including Google Messages.

On the local device, text messages (SMS and MMS) will remain in local storage and will be accessible from within a replacement messaging application such as Google Messages.

However, some users appear to be frustrated at the change as Verizon’s method of discontinuing the app has left messages inaccessible until users manually switch to another messaging app, as some have vocally mentioned on social media.

We tested this, and the app does have a full screen pop-up that tells users the app was shut down on December 9, and prevents all access to existing messages. The pop-up tells users to switch to Google Messages and that “all your messaging history will transfer.” A “Switch now” button at the bottom of the screen opens Google Messages (if it is installed) which prompts users to switch their default SMS app.

Some users report that some messages are still missing, though, and apparently a “switch now” prompt in the app doesn’t work as some have mentioned, though we believe this to be a misunderstanding/user error, as users also need to manually choose to switch their default SMS app to Google Messages after pressing this button, as pictured below.

Users have also been vocal regarding their preferences in Verizon’s app, though many of these seem to be related to changes in workflow between the two apps for certain tasks.

In any case, those affected by the shutdown of Verizon Message+ and, in turn, unable to access their messages, should follow Google’s recent guide which details the switching process and shows users how to replicate some popular Message+ features within the new app.