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Whats the point of a Geni Subscription without MyHeritage Subscription?

Michael Batts

January 03, 2018 23:40

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Well, I'm into my first day of the 14 day free trial of Geni.  I'm impressed with the interface and the way they manage the tree data by not allowing gedcom import.  However, one of the listed reasons for buying the subscription is that one can find matches and (presumably) grow ones tree.  However, after creating records for myself, my parents, and grandparents several matches were shown, many of them listing private information about living people, MY LIVING PEOPLE!  Now, not only is that a problem with me but when I click on these matches I'm transported to the MyHeritage website and asked to give them $175 to see the matches I found on Geni.  Hmmmm, let me see if I get this correctly, I pay Geni $120 (on sale) to see matches that MyHeritage then wants to charge me $175 to actually see....  Hmmmm, I guess in truth, Geni doesn't tell me I can actually REVIEW or DO ANYTHING with the matches it finds, only that it finds them for me.  Soooooo, I gotta spend almost $400 per year to use the system for anything but a fancy Access Database?  No wonder Ancestry is the leader in genealogical research; twice the records at half the price.

Someone PLEASE educate me and tell me what I'm getting for the $120 Geni wants me to spend for a yearly subscription.  I just don't see it....  Additionally, is a MyHeritage Subscription necessary to get any value from Geni?  :-(

Michael

10 comments

• 
  Geni Support Team January 09, 2018 23:26 Official comment

  Hi all,

   

  Allow me to help clear up some confusion. MyHeritage is Geni's parent company, but the two websites continue to operate separately. 

   

  A basic account on Geni is free. With a free account, you can add unlimited people to the tree, merge duplicates, collaborate with others, and take advantage of our DNA features. A Geni Pro subscription will give you access to additional features, such as Tree Matches (matching profiles on Geni), full access to our search engine, unlimited media storage, and priority support. Note it is not required to upgrade to use Geni.

   

  Record Matches and Smart Matches are offered in partnership with MyHeritage and require a separate MyHeritage data subscription to confirm them to your Geni profiles. Historical records have high costs associated with them such as royalties and digitization resources that unfortunately prevent us from including them in our existing Geni Pro subscriptions.

   

  We do offer a 2-week free trial of Geni Pro if you would like to try out our premium features. You can cancel at anytime during the trial and not be charged. You can also choose to have a free Geni account and upgrade to a MyHeritage data subscription, so you can confirm your Record Matches and Smart Matches to your tree on Geni.

   

  If you have any questions about your Pro subscription, please email us at subscriptions@geni.com.
• 7
  
  Donald Loponen January 05, 2018 01:53

  I just got Geni Pro and now am wondering the same thing.

• 7
  
  Michael Batts January 05, 2018 02:04

  Well, If someone doesn't give me a compelling reason to use Geni without the MyHeritage subscription then the 14 day free trial will be the extent of my usage...  Both platforms TOGETHER aren't worth $400 per year...

   

• 7
  
  Samuel Robert Caswell January 06, 2018 08:29

  Basically the same comment. Geni has a simpler format but without the MyHeritage subscription (which I notice is who my billing is from) is not that valuable. 

• 7
  
  Joy Olivia Paulson January 07, 2018 02:18

  Ditto !!!    It feels like bait and switch -- pay for geni and oh by the way - pay more for what is advertised as already included.   Ancestry is worth the price - this is not.  I'll be done in the 14 days, too.

• 7
  
  Michael Batts January 07, 2018 02:33

  Yeah, I probably won't wait that long.  Unless they change the model I don't see them lasting very long so not worth my efforts to post my data.

  I called MyHeritage support and they told me that Geni sold their data to MyHeritage.  Of course, they call it a 'partnership' but it sounds to me like the death of Geni.

  MyHeritage doesn't offer enough of a difference from Ancestry to be worth even the $175 per year.  Add the cost of this mess and its a deal breaker....  Too bad the administration here doesn't even try to defend or market it....

  Too bad there isn't an alternative to Ancestry.  As we have seen with Comcast Cable, when you're the only viable game in town you can pretty much do what you want....

• 0
  
  Jean L McCluskey January 15, 2018 06:09

  How do I stop automatic renewal of a Geni Pro account? I’m not sure when it became Pro and automatic.

• 0
  
  Geni Team January 15, 2018 17:10

  Hi Jean, you can cancel automatic renewals in your premium account settings: https://www.geni.com/account_settings/premium_account

  See our FAQ for more details: How do I cancel automatic renewals?

  You can also email us at subscriptions@geni.com if you have further questions about your Pro account.

• 4
  
  Eric Hutton March 06, 2018 21:48

  yup, I have to echo these sentiments... the only reason I signed up for the 14 free trial membership, after playing around with the free membership for a few days, is because I thought it would unlock the matches I'm seeing to MyHeritage... Without that feature, well, no thank you, I will revert to the free membership. 

  Maybe you should think about three tiers: Free, Basic (without MyHeritage), and Pro (With MyHeritage)... the basic should probably be less than what you are charging currently, but the Pro could then be more. 

• 0
  
  Agnieszka Kloryga March 10, 2018 11:46

  Hi I unsubscribe Gemi just after I saw that I have to pay after 14 days, but ... after 14 days Gemi took from my account money! I can't agree for that kind of acting! I wrote to them , and we will see, but if they won't react I'll go to the court