Video Chat
![Video chat.png Video chat.png](https://www.pubnub.com/cdn/3prze68gbwl1/3D34iE5tIuUVmCI9tRoByy/a3d7547e7fb630f1a71d8f497d26478f/Video_chat.png?w=747&h=325&fit=pad)
Video chat describes visual, remote communication between two or more parties, each equipped with a camera and microphone to see and hear the other participants.
Video chats are commonly delivered through smartphones or computers and will typically incorporate other features such as a chat conversation window or ‘whiteboard’.
Components needed to build a video chat application
When building video chat, you'll want to ensure your app can scale and work in real time to handle any number of users to provide true real-time engagement.
Here are a few factors to keep in mind in order to accomplish this.
Functionality: Having real-time functionality that your users expect like a lightning fast chat and emoji reactions.
Scalability: Ensure you have a robust backend that can support users and devices interacting simultaneously.
Security: Safeguard your video chat with end-to-end encryption for messages and utilize access controls and chat filters for moderation.
Integrations: Check that your video chat has the ability to work with third-party integrations so that you can easily add new real-time capabilities as needed.
Common video chat app features you can build
Incorporating engaging features into your video chat can create a memorable user experience which can ultimately lead to increased customer loyalty and retention.
Below are some common features you can implement to boost engagement:
Direct & group chat
Viewer reactions
Live comments
Online/offline presence detection
Typing indicators
Chat history
File attachments
Emojis & reactions
Live trivia or polls
Push notifications
User & content moderation
How to build a video chat app
PubNub specializes in in-app chat. However, customers can take advantage of one of our strategic partnerships in the video communications space to deliver an end-to-end video chat solution.
If you want to learn more about getting started with video chat, book a demo.