ooVoo was a

video chat Videotelephony (also known as videoconferencing or video calling) is the use of audio and video for simultaneous two-way communication. Today, videotelephony is widespread. There are many terms to refer to videotelephony. ''Videophones'' are ...

and

messaging A message is a unit of communication that conveys information from a sender to a receiver. It can be transmitted through various forms, such as spoken or written words, signals, or electronic data, and can range from simple instructions to co ...

app developed by ooVoo LLC and owned by Krush Technologies, LLC. ooVoo had applications for Android,

iOS Ios, Io or Nio (, ; ; locally Nios, Νιός) is a Greek island in the Cyclades group in the Aegean Sea. Ios is a hilly island with cliffs down to the sea on most sides. It is situated halfway between Naxos and Santorini. It is about long an ...

Mac OS X macOS, previously OS X and originally Mac OS X, is a Unix, Unix-based operating system developed and marketed by Apple Inc., Apple since 2001. It is the current operating system for Apple's Mac (computer), Mac computers. With ...

Microsoft Windows Windows is a Product lining, product line of Proprietary software, proprietary graphical user interface, graphical operating systems developed and marketed by Microsoft. It is grouped into families and subfamilies that cater to particular sec ...

Windows Phone Windows Phone (WP) is a discontinued mobile operating system developed by Microsoft Mobile for smartphones as the replacement successor to Windows Mobile and Zune. Windows Phone featured a new user interface derived from the Metro design languag ...

, and

Facebook Facebook is a social media and social networking service owned by the American technology conglomerate Meta Platforms, Meta. Created in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with four other Harvard College students and roommates, Eduardo Saverin, Andre ...

. The original

app was released in 2007. It was discontinued on November 25, 2017.

Features

ooVoo allowed users to communicate through free messaging, voice, and video chat. ooVoo

video conferencing Videotelephony (also known as videoconferencing or video calling) is the use of audio signal, audio and video for simultaneous two-way communication. Today, videotelephony is widespread. There are many terms to refer to videotelephony. ''Vide ...

technology can have HD video and audio calls with up to twelve participants simultaneously and

desktop sharing Desktop sharing is a common name for technologies and products that allow remote access and remote collaboration on a person's computer desktop through a graphical terminal emulator. The most common two scenarios for desktop sharing are: * Remote ...

History

ooVoo was founded in 2006 by Philippe Schwartz and Ohio entrepreneur Clay Mathile based on technology developed at Arel Communications and Software (formerly NASDAQ:ARLCF). Arel was founded in 1982 and specializes in remote e-learning collaboration

application software Application software is any computer program that is intended for end-user use not operating, administering or programming the computer. An application (app, application program, software application) is any program that can be categorized as ...

. On March 13, 2006, Arel Communications was taken private by its current owners and relaunched as ooVoo. In June 2007, ooVoo for Microsoft Windows launched, with a video chat feature. In February 2008, video call recording and phone calling were introduced. In May 2008, ooVoo for Apple's OS X launched, creating cross-platform capabilities for video chat. In February 2009, ooVoo 2.0 launched and featured browser-based video chat rooms and video chat through a web link with no download required. An open

API An application programming interface (API) is a connection between computers or between computer programs. It is a type of software interface, offering a service to other pieces of software. A document or standard that describes how to build ...

was launched with version 2.0, allowing developers to build customized applications and widgets. In May 2009, ooVoo introduced the first

air-to-ground Air-to-ground weaponry is aircraft ordnance used by combat aircraft to attack ground targets. The weapons include bombs, machine guns, autocannons, air-to-surface missiles, rockets, air-launched cruise missiles and grenade launchers. See also ...

three-way video conversation. ooVoo version 2.2 was launched in July 2009, and introduced business plans geared for multiple seats and desktop sharing. New

pay-as-you-go Pay as you go or PAYG may refer to: Finance * Pay-as-you-go tax, or pay-as-you-earn tax * Pay-as-you-go pension plan * PAYGO, the practice in the US of financing expenditures with current funds rather than borrowing * PAUG, a structured financial ...

options and international phone calling were also introduced. In January 2010, ooVoo released its app for Android mobile devices. On 2 June 2011, ooVoo launched its social video chat service on Apple's

iPhone The iPhone is a line of smartphones developed and marketed by Apple that run iOS, the company's own mobile operating system. The first-generation iPhone was announced by then–Apple CEO and co-founder Steve Jobs on January 9, 2007, at ...

(and other iOS devices), making its free HD Video chat service cross platforms, including: PC, Mac, Android and iPhone. On July 22, 2013, ooVoo released a Software Development Kit (SDK), allowing other applications to leverage its video chat technology (current apps leveraging the ooVoo SDK: Flinch, Heystax). On June 10, 2014, ooVoo released its app for Windows Phone devices. On September 9, 2014, ooVoo released its Video SDK for WebRTC. On November 25, 2017, ooVoo announced via

Twitter Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...

that it would be shutting down, citing a lack of profit as the reason.

Accolades

* ooVoo won ''

PC Magazine ''PC Magazine'' (shortened as ''PCMag'') is an American computer magazine published by Ziff Davis. A print edition was published from 1982 to January 2009. Publication of online editions started in late 1994 and continues . Overview ''PC Mag ...

s Software Innovation "Best in Show" Award at the DigitalLife Expo in September 2007. * In March 2008, ooVoo won the "Webware 100" award for Communication. * ooVoo won ''PC Magazines Best Mobile Product of 2011 in the Android Category * ooVoo won the Tabby Award in the Social category for its Android app in August 2013. * ooVoo was a nominee and finalist for a Mobby Award in the Business Collaboration category for its Android app in September 2015. * ooVoo was honored in 2016 with a Mobile Excellence Award for Best Social Community. * ooVoo won the CES Innovation Award Honoree in 2016.

References

{{Instant messaging VoIP software MacOS instant messaging clients Windows instant messaging clients Software development kits Videotelephony 2007 software Webcams Universal Windows Platform apps Defunct instant messaging clients