Consumers Choose ooVoo Video Calling to Connect With Loved Ones Over Holidays

NEW YORK, Jan. 13 /PRNewswire/ -- The holidays are a time to connect with friends and family and this holiday season, if loved ones weren't able to be close together they chose video chat to connect in huge numbers.

ooVoo, a leader in video and audio communication, today released its December usage report revealing a significant surge in traffic last month, which gives a window into changing consumer behaviors in the communications category. The software company's Web site visits increased more than 50% on Christmas Day alone and video activity grew year-over-year by 500%.  

"ooVoo was a wonderful way for me and my children to connect with family and friends we were unable to see in person over the holidays," said Richmond, VA-based mother of two Robyn Sinclair.  "We called both friends and family out of state, caught up on gift giving news and weather related events and also got to see my new niece for the first time!" 

"We are always happy to see an increase in our numbers of users and video chat usage but even more so over the holidays," said Philippe Schwartz, ooVoo CEO. "This confirms our belief that connecting face-to-face, whether for personal or business use, can bridge distances and make people feel closer together than phone, text or email."

ooVoo has seen year-over-year growth of more than twice the rate of the industry's standard 20-30% growth rate as they continue to gain market share in the growing video chat/video conferencing category. ooVoo customers participated in more than 200 million minutes (the total minutes used per call) of video calling in December.

ooVoo's Facebook fan group grew 40% in December alone with new members posting about using ooVoo to connect with their family members over the holidays. One ooVoo Facebook fan noted she hadn't seen her son's face in more than 10 years but finally did this holiday season thanks to video chat on ooVoo.

"We believe the holiday traffic surge was due in part to the higher travel costs and overall economic challenges faced by many families," said Schwartz. "However new laptops with embedded Web cams, faster broadband connections and a general embracing of new communication tools such as video chat plays just as strong a role."

From swapping holiday recipes to sending recorded video messages to engaging in a remote family traditions, such as a holiday toast, ooVoo users are finding innovative ways to keep face-to-face traditions alive through video communication.

About ooVoo

ooVoo, a privately-held company based in New York, provides a high-quality video and audio communication service for people to call and connect over the Internet.  ooVoo's superior quality video and audio is available to anyone with a computer, broadband connection and a web camera.  Real-time video calls accommodate up to six friends, relatives or colleagues simultaneously.  ooVoo offers high-resolution video, video conversation recording, telephony, desktop sharing, video messaging, instant message chat and file sharing among other capabilities. Download ooVoo at www.ooVoo.com.

SOURCE ooVoo