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Library/App & software/Houseparty
Grade B29 sourcesHIS-00218

Houseparty

App & software · 2016 · Viral

Made by Life on Air in-house · Source

61Editable slideCertificate

A group video chat app reported 50 million sign-ups during the lockdown surge.

The Houseparty screen for connecting a Fortnite account.
Epic Games / Houseparty
Houseparty group video chat with the block, profile and zoom controls open.
Epic Games / Houseparty
Houseparty video chat beside Fortnite gameplay.
Epic Games / Houseparty
Meerkat Lives On As Live Group Video Chat App Houseparty | Fortune
Fortune
EXPERIENCE Banner Image
Fenwick & West

Spread Score

How it works
Reach61Contagion50Breadth100Velocity49Longevity3561

Numbers

Sensor Tower estimated mobile installs, prior 30 days
28M
As of Apr 15, 2020 · App stores · Self-reported · TechCrunch
Peak date
Mar 2020
Feb 2016 to Mar 2020
Platforms
5
Started on App stores
Origin
Seeded
Technology

Mechanics

  • Maker origin
  • Press loopPrimary
  • Controversy
  • Revival
  • Platform jump

How it spread

Trace the origin

Houseparty spread through school demos and friend invitations, then added games. Lockdowns brought a second surge and unproven hacking rumours. It reported 50 million sign-ups, launched celebrity co-watching and closed in 2021.

Dates use the stated precision; chart positions are date anchors.

Wikipedia views · Google searchesNov ’15Apr ’16JulNovMay ’17Mar ’18OctMay ’19NovApr ’20JunMay ’21NovPeakApp storesGroup chatsPressOpen webX
App storesGroup chatsPressOpen webX

13 more events on this chart

Join free to see them

Timeline (16)

  1. February 2016

    Life on Air seed · Feb 2016

    Life on Air released Houseparty quietly in the Apple App Store.[1][3][12]

    Meerkat Lives On As Live Group Video Chat App Houseparty | Fortune
    Open the first post ↗

  2. May 2016

    Houseparty users commercial · May 2016

    The founders recalled a May 2016 surge and separately described weekly school visits and revisions during beta.[2][12][17]

  3. June 2016

    Engadget press · Jun 16 ’16

    Engadget reported that Meerkat’s team had quietly launched Houseparty.[3]

Changelogupdated Oct 16 ’26
  1. 2026-10-16Revised 1 event
  2. 2026-10-14Revised 1 event · Added 1 source · Fact-check passed (47 claims)
  3. 2026-10-13Added 2 sources · Archived 2 sources · Added 2 evidence checks · Score 49 → 55
  4. 2026-10-12Added: 16 events, 25 sources · Score 49
Origin
Seeded
Sector
Technology
Region
US
Sensor Tower estimated mobile installs, prior 30 days
28M
As of Apr 15, 2020 · App stores · Self-reported · TechCrunch
Evidence
Grade B

Spread the same way

Locket Widget

App stores · 2022

52
Official Locket graphic showing friends’ photos inside the home-screen widget

10M downloads a month

Lovable

Open web · 2024

46
Current Lovable dashboard with the prompt field and project cards, from the official documentation

$600M revenue

Peach

App stores · 2016

39
Official Peach App Store screenshot showing the social app interface.

Peaked at #9

NGL app

App stores · 2021

34
Official NGL App Store screenshot showing a question card shared over an Instagram Story.

125M users

New cases, every week

How the next thing spread, the week it does.

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· Source
Wikipedia views · Google searchesNov ’15Apr ’16JulNovMay ’17Mar ’18OctMay ’19NovApr ’20JunMay ’21NovPeakApp storesGroup chatsPressOpen webX
App storesGroup chatsPressOpen webX

13 more events on this chart

Join free to see them

  1. February 2016

    Life on Air seed · Feb 2016

    Life on Air released Houseparty quietly in the Apple App Store.[1][3][12]

    Meerkat Lives On As Live Group Video Chat App Houseparty | Fortune
    Open the first post ↗

  2. May 2016

    Houseparty users commercial · May 2016

    The founders recalled a May 2016 surge and separately described weekly school visits and revisions during beta.[2][12][17]

  3. June 2016

    Engadget press · Jun 16 ’16

    Engadget reported that Meerkat’s team had quietly launched Houseparty.[3]

  1. owner response · Aug 2016

  2. commercial · Feb 2017

Join free to see the other 13 events and the full chart. Free, on every case.

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Why it worked

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