“The group video chat is the perfect app for Generation Z to continue their disconnect with physical reality” – Forbes
“Houseparty has a big base around teenagers and always has….. (But) with what’s going on, a bunch of adults now have the time and need for new connections.” – Ben Rubin, Houseparty co-founder
WHAT IS HOUSEPARTY?
Houseparty is a video chatting app that mimics an actual house party allowing users to move from “room” to ”room” while video chatting with others. Users can chat with 2-8 people at the same time. They can also text people and play games at the same time on the app.
THE COVID EXPLOSION
The app was downloaded over 2 million times during the first week of March 2020 during the coronavirus outbreak. Although it is rated for ages 12+ on the App Store, students have found ways to download it too. After a launch which saw 60% of users under 24, it has now been embraced by older adults due to COVID19.
HOW HOUSEPARTY WORKS
The app asks for the user’s phone number and permission to access your camera, microphone and location. It also asks permission to access the user’s phone contacts and social media profiles. Friends get a notification whenever a user logs in and he/she can use hand waves or button tap to start video chatting. You can pop in at any time and give your friends a shock! So careful with the gossip :) Users can tap the “dice” icon to start playing games during a chat or use the lock icon to prevent anyone else from entering the chat.
HOW CAN I BUY PAID ADS ON HOUSEPARTY?
Want to take advantage of the Houseparty covid19 explosion for your business? Houseparty encourages users to have frequent, candid conversations with their family, friends or friends of friends. It creates a live, always on place that you can dip in and out of whenever you want. Just like the likes of VIBER, it sounds just like the type of platform that the owners could monetise with some display ads – but unfortunately this is not the case. Houseparty does not have an option to advertise on their platform, but they have a bunch of trivia and arcade games that users can pay to play. Houseparty joined EPIC GAMES last year, the makers of FORTNITE, so gaming will likely be more and more of a focus over the foreseeable future.
Houseparty may have looked closely at the stalling growth of apps like Snapchat which tried to take on the likes of Google and Facebook for ad revenue, and pivoted quickly to in app purchases for their revenue stream.
