5 things you didn't know about Chatroulette

216 chatroulette thumb.jpgThe most fun you can have in front of a webcam, Chatroulette is everybody’s favourite new NSFW video chat site. But here are five things you didn’t know about it:

1. It was founded by a seventeen year-old Russian programmer called Andrey Ternovskiy, who started it for him and his friends to chat on.
[NY Times]

2. You get blocked for 10 minutes if you use the term “asl” in the text chat (as in the age/sex/location question favoured by gay men in the aol chatrooms of the 90s, don’t ask me how I know). Saying “fuck” is fine though. I don’t know what the reasoning behind that is. I tried – it’s true: look:

chatroulette as


3. You get blocked for posting pornographic images. Yes, you may well look surprised. “Chatroulette does not tolerate broadcasting obscene, offending, pornographic material and we will have to block users who violate these rules from using our service” these are the terms of use of the site- at least 50% of users certainly haven’t read these. Or just had taken their underwear off already and then couldn’t be bothered to put it back on again.

4. French Connection ie the clothing brand have got into Chatroulette, for advertising purposes. They’re offering £250 FCUK vouchers for any guy who gets a date through the site. How do you prove you got a date through the site? I don’t know. Presumably they do. [shiny]

5. Web academics predict that the penises will go and be replaced by celebrities: “After ChatRoulette users become more acquainted with the system (ie., do not browse solely to explore), we predict a decrease in explicit content, an increase in the consolidation of content genres, and an increase in the formation of celebrity figures.” say the webecology team, an interdisciplinary research group based in Boston, USA.

I would like to report that people have been seen masturbating with lettuce and “real” raccoons and – but I doubt that would surprise anyone.

See also: Getting Blocked on Chatroulette: when people use the Report button the wrong way

Related: French Connection in rubbish Chatroulette competition and Catroulette: Chatroulette + Cats = LOVE

Anna Leach

28 comments

  • the ppl blocking everyone are 12 and 11 years olds who arent supposed to be on the site anyway!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  • So, you're not allowed to show sexually suggestive images on Chatroulette, and if someone claims that you did, you've to get yourself unbanned by looking at the very thing they don't want to show anyone?

    Yeah, good one… Go f*** yourself Chatroulette.

  • I would like to report that people have been seen masturbating with lettuce and “real” raccoons and – but I doubt that would surprise anyone. 

  • i got permanently blocked from CR. i wasnt doing anything inappropriate, & i got blocked. stop abusing the report button!

  • I got blocked two nights ago for no reason what so ever. I’m a chick, I was doing anything inappropriate, yet some old man reported me… Jerk. And I’ve been blocked since then…What is going on? It was my first time even being on the site.

  • I got PERMANENTLY banned from there… I get redicrected to some third party site, I have never done anythin wrong on that site! I don’t even take off my socks! haha but.. When I put the camera showing the screen of my laptop for a while, so people could see them selves and wave at themselves, about two minutes later It said I have been permanently banned from Chat Roullet for violations of temrs.. What on earth did I do wrong?

  • I went on Chatroulette last night for the 1st time just to see what it was like! I was on it for 15mins max, and some old guy blocked me! I looked into how long the block lasted, andsaid could be up to a couple of hours! I have come in from work this evening, and 24 hours later I am still banned! I think it is stupid and very unfair! Maybe I need to try getting my willy out, might have more luck on not being blocked!!!

  • i had a chart of penis count boob count and thumbs up count, got blocked by a wanker. seriously, that whole site is jerk offs, people jerking off, and 12 year olds. and i get banned for showing them how many people are actually chatting and not batin’. oh well lol

  • geting anoyed with chatroulete for blocking me for no reson, they better fix it or am find something else, any suggestions?

  • I wish people would at least type thanks and/or goodbye after a mutual “good time” instead of just clicking off. Is that too much to ask in this haven of voyeuristic mutual masturbation?

  • Lol I got blocked for ten minutes today for absolutely no reason. Just sitting there, fully clothed, wearing shades and headphones nodding my head back and forwards like an idiot. Wasn’t even using the text chat.

  • well, im a girl and ive gotten blocked…doing nothing wrong and i don’t wacth the wankers, i just get blocked for being ugly, you get people on there laughing at you…isn’t the world just so mean these days

  • dude its chat roulette, are you seriously crying over that its not fair that you get blocked? who cares

  • got blocked twice… and other than the pervs i’ve had a relatively good experience on cr… is there some pervs on chatroulette blog where they all decided to do this?

  • Yep…I too keep being blocked and I am just sitting there fully clothed. There has to be a better way of regulating this.

  • For me is the same, getting blocked for no reason. Sitting clothed in front of my cam doing nothing offensive and try to find a nice chat. Preferably with a nice girl. But mostly the girls click next within a fraction of a second :( only those wankers stay on and on and on. But also I got nice and funny chats with gorgeous women and even with some guys. And suddenly, out of the blue I’m blocked. This system is not really fair.

  • I fully agree with you their david, ive had the same thing happen to me 3 times already, im fully clothes, not doing anything remotely offensive, all i see is dudes and then block… its kinda pathetic really.

  • Gray area there … I wouldn’t compare being blocked for something like that to being blocked for doing nothing questionable at all.

  • I’m suddenly getting blocked today (April 2) too. And all I’m showing is a sign asking, nicely, for my partner to pull up his or her shirt. I’m not blocking the wankers. Live and let wank, I say.

  • After getting blocked for the first time today for no real reason (just a clothed guy sitting here doing nothing remotely offensive, certainly don’t look offensive, and not getting to see any connection long enough to be considered “boring”), I discovered this is happening to may others as well. I think some of the pervs are looking for girls to “watch them” and are just clicking the “Report” button when they see yet another dude. The block thing was a good idea, but isn’t working in practice. I’m not sure how they are tracking you (e.g. IP address, MAC address, etc.), but my recommendation would be to have a system more like stackoverflow where you can earn reputation points for not being obscene and then based on your reputation, anyone with less reputation can’t down vote you, or maybe their down vote is worth less than yours, or something. There just has to be something done to keep the pervs or just everyday people from reporting people for not being the proper sex.

  • After getting blocked for the first time today for no real reason (just a clothed guy sitting here doing nothing remotely offensive, certainly don’t look offensive, and not getting to see any connection long enough to be considered “boring”), I discovered this is happening to may others as well. I think some of the pervs are looking for girls to “watch them” and are just clicking the “Report” button when they see yet another dude. The block thing was a good idea, but isn’t working in practice. I’m not sure how they are tracking you (e.g. IP address, MAC address, etc.), but my recommendation would be to have a system more like stackoverflow where you can earn reputation points for not being obscene and then based on your reputation, anyone with less reputation can’t down vote you, or maybe their down vote is worth less than yours, or something. There just has to be something done to keep the pervs or just everyday people from reporting people for not being the proper sex.

  • It’s funny how Omegle is a spin-off of anicechat.net and ChatRoulette a spin-off of Omegle! I think anicechat.net deserves some respect, as it was the first. Create a facebook group and spread the truth, anyone?

  • a funny blog about chatroulette : http:chatroulettepics.com
    some really funny screenshots

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