Chat Roulette: Early Thoughts and Opportunities

Before I get started, let me warn you that even though Chat Roulette “does not tolerate broadcasting obscene, offending, pornographic material,” you will find that Chat Roulette does contain exactly that kind of content. So, keep that in mind before you choose to visit the site.

Chat Roulette is a really interesting concept. Basically, the site allows you to interact with complete strangers through video chat. You’re not required to have a video camera, but that’s kind of the point (see Omegle, if you’re interested in text chat with strangers). The way a friend first introduced Chat Roulette to me was as “a snapshot of the Internet.” While the demographics of Chat Roulette probably don’t line with the demographics of Internet users in general, that statement is kind of true. Chat Roulette does not discriminate by age, race, gender, location or any other attribute. You never know who, or what, you’re doing to get.

I can only describe my visits to the site as “weird.” In my experience, Chat Roulette has been full of males in their 20’s who immediately click “next” upon seeing another male in his 20’s. There is a good amount of X-rated material, specifically male genitalia, and also hand-written signs asking girls to “show your boobs!” So, Chat Roulette may not be the most sophisticated of platforms, yet, but is there something there?

Too “Dangerous” for Brands?

This past weekend, there were reports on Twitter that the Jonas Brothers were on Chat Roulette connecting with fans. While testing out the platform, our co-founder, AJ Vaynerchuk actually landed on them. Later on, AJ landed on Soulja Boy, and began to talk to him. Turns out it they both were fake, just some hacker messing with us Chat Roulette n00bs.

Yesterday, ScreenCrave reported that Ashton Kutcher made an appearance on Chat Roulette. As far as I know, Kutcher has made no official statement as to whether or not it was actually him. I’m actually fairly confident it was Kutcher, he’s big in the online / social media scene, a huge Twitter user and an early adopter.

Whether or not AJ actually talked with the Jonas Brothers or with Soulja Boy, or Ashton was actually on Chat Roulette, that’s all irrelevant. The fact is that brands really could be utilizing Chat Roulette to reach out to fans, and fans could be given the chance to interact with and ask questions of their favorite brands. But is it too risky, too crude of a platform for brands at this point? (To be honest, I don’t think the Jonas Brothers’ mother would approve of some of the material on the site!) Or is it just too random?

A more closed, private, and brand-centric platform?

Imagine being able to have a Chat Roulette that only consisted of your Facebook friends or your Twitter followers. Even better, imagine being a brand, and having the ability to tell your fans and followers that you were live on this site, willing to give every person 30 seconds to a minute of personal video interaction.

Part of the problem is that the appeal and mystique of Chat Roulette is that you connect with complete strangers, and the conversations are 100% random. I don’t get on Chat Roulette expecting to talk about anything in particular, because I have no idea who might be on the other side next.

Final Thoughts & Questions

Who knows where Chat Roulette is heading and if it will ever reach critical mass. AJ actually wrote a nice post summarizing his experience on the site, and asked some really interesting questions. Have you had any experience with Chat Roulette, and if so, do you see any potential for brands? Do you think Chat Roulette will become one of the next “big things” or is it a fad that will never go mainstream? This is more of an open-ended post because of how new and rugged Chat Roulette is at this point. I’d love to hear your thoughts!