In the same week that Google set forth their mandate to reinvent email with their new “Inbox” app, Facebook also announced they were planning to reinvent the chat room with “Rooms,” an app that plans to bring back the glory days of MSN. The new app, simply called “Facebook Rooms,” allows users to create anonymous chatrooms similar to those seen in the mid-90's, and you don't even need to be a member of Facebook to use the service. The service is completely separate from the primary Facebook experience, and uses a similar internet relay chat (IRC) system that was used in the early days of the internet, only with Facebook's very modern terms and conditions applied.
The new app, simply called “Rooms,” allows users to create anonymous chatrooms similar to those seen in the mid-90's
Facebook's Josh Miller, who created the app, said “One of the magical things about the early days of the web was connecting to people who you would never encounter otherwise in your daily life,” and this is something they hope people will rediscover through Rooms. He added that “Forums, message boards and chatrooms were meeting places for people who didn't necessarily share geographies or social connections, but had something in common,” which is an aspect of the internet that has been largely absent since MSN messenger went the way of the dodo.
CNET – Facebook Rooms
The rooms are far from the drab, lifeless chat rooms of yore too, these are bespoke rooms created by the London-based Facebook Creative Labs team, the look and content of which will be dictated by the users. Early adopters to the app have already created rooms focused on everything from beat-boxing to martial arts. The primary thing that Rooms offers that Facebook itself doesn't however, is anonymity. Users can choose whether or not to use their real names in discussions, which has obvious benefits for those seeking to minimise their digital footprint. Miller said that one of the things his team loves most about the internet is “Its potential to let us be whoever we want to be.” He says that being able to “Break away from the constraints of our everyday selves” can prove incredibly liberating, which is why they have designed Rooms so that “You can be Wonder Woman, or whatever name makes you feel most comfortable and proud.”
The primary thing that Rooms offers that Facebook itself doesn't is anonymity
Miller admits that the app, which is currently mobile only and limited to iPhone users, has been “Inspired by both the ethos of early web communities and the capabilities of modern smartphones,” but is quick to point out that Rooms is very much its own beast. To join a Room, users have to scan a QR code, which can be shared publicly or privately (users choice), with the caveat that age ratings can be applied and that Facebook's community standard guidelines will be rigorously enforced. It essentially represents an anonymous, but safe way for people with similar interests to meet, which is essentially what the internet was built for in the first place! The app is currently available for free from the App Store, though an Android version is planned for early next year.
Just a week since it's launch, a completely separate App named Room has claimed the social media king has stolen their intellectual property. CEO, Damien Rottemberg, as spoken out to 9to5Mac describing this incident as "...not a coincidence." How a company and legal team of this size missed a . No lawsuits have been issued of yet but Room's co-founders seem to be "debating legal action".
Benjamin Hiorns is a freelance writer and musician from Kidderminster in the UK who spent a significant portion of his teenage years on MSN.
