Chatroulette is an in-browser, video-chat service that pairs two participants together at random. Users have the ability to send typed messages to each other, in addition to talking via their computers’ webcams, and can quickly jump from one conversation to the next. The randomness of the connections was part of the service’s allure. Released in 2009 by 17-year-old Andrey Ternovskiy, a Russian teen, the service quickly became popular by word of mouth. The user base has historically consisted of mostly men. The service gained a negative reputation as a result of the lewd acts committed by some participating users. A much more family friendly use of Chatroulette also appeared, with a number of popular Youtube videos created showing people playing music, singing, or dancing for surprised people on the other end of the chat. Chatroulette is no longer the cultural force that it once was (even if only for a brief moment in time), but it still exists to this day.



7 Alternatives to Airtime Video Chat


What I Learned on Airtime With Sean Parker


Mark Zuckerberg Does Not Look Thrilled with Airtime
