Do a search on any of the search engines for phone chat lines and you’ll see quite a few places offering these services. It’s big business here in the UK and the States. So how exactly do they work? Are they full of seedy people? Are they a con? How can I set up my own chat service?

How do they work?

The boring technical stuff in a nutshell is that a phone network operator or service provider would set up an IVR (Interactive Voice Response) kit to become a chat platform which will allow callers to call in to and interact with others.  Callers will usually phone in on a premium rate number – usually 08 or 09 prefix which would cost a certain amount, for example, 0871 may cost 10 pence per minute. Now, the money earned from these calls filters down the chain to – the network that own the pr number, the service provider and in some cases the person advertising the service. One important note to consider on the phone charges is that in most cases if you phone these numbers from your mobile phone then the mobile network will charge you extra to make the call, for example, calling a 0871 (10p per minute) number through Vodafone may cost as much as 35 pence per minute. In this case the mobile networks cream off the profits and this extra charge DOES NOT filter down to the number owner or the service provider….nice little earner for the mobile networks.

When you phone into the service you will normally be asked to record a voice intro message about yourself. Once you have done this you can start to interact with other callers on the line. This can be by sending a caller a voice message, engaging in a one to one voice chat (scary stuff!!) or by setting up a private voice mail box whereby you can pick up messages when you are offline. Some systems may have facilities to send text messages or upload/download photos (even scarier!!).

Chat Line can be a cheap(ish) way to meet and chat with new people without even having to leave your house or even the arm chair. Obviously, the longer you chat for on the line the more you will get charged on your phone bill. All in all though, chat lines have reduced in price over the years when they use to charge £1.50 per minute. Now you’ll find a number of providers offering these services on 10p per minute or even cheaper.

Are they full of seedy people?

Like walking into a busy bar, you’ll always find a diverse mix or people and personalities. Calling in to a chat line is pretty much the same thing although you don’t have their looks to go on for starters. Some people use it for chat and to meet new friends, others go down the dating road and call for romance and yes there are those who call for the more risqué stuff.

You’ll find that the callers on a Gay Chat Line seem to be more upfront and interested in meeting up.You will also be surprised at how many married and straight guys you will hear on the line. The term bi curious springs to mind.

One important thing to remember, if you are going to meet up with someone you have been chatting to then make sure you always tell a friend or family member where you are going and also meet your date in a public place just in case they turn out to be an axe murderer. Oh and never give out your personal information on the service either – basic common sense.

Are they a con?

 Generally they are not, if they are run on a premium rate number then there are strict guide lines as to how they work and how they should be advertised i.e. pricing information and age restrictions.

 They can be expensive if you call a lot but you should be aware of the charges before calling and if you enjoy it and can afford it then this shouldn’t really be a problem. If you are a power user and enjoy these chat lines then most services will have a cheaper credit card option – buy your minutes in advance and access the service through a 0800 freefone number. This will no doubt be a lot cheaper than phoning the more expensive premium rate numbers.

One thing to look out for when calling in to these lines is some services may use operators to pretend to be genuine callers on the line. They do this so that there’s people on the line for you to talk to – normally women operators and so you stay on the line longer. You can normally tell this by the fact that they are overly keen to chat and have slick sexy introduction messages.

Two services where I can 100% guarantee that all the callers are genuine are;

Chat2Date – www.Chat2Date.co.uk

And

Gay Adult Chat – www.GayAdultChat.co.uk

Both of these services have hundreds of callers on the line 24/7.

How can I set up  my own chat line?

One word – DON’T, unless you have a spare ten’s of thousands of pounds lying around the house. You need to invest in expensive kit, numbers, advertising and most importantly make sure you have a critical mass of callers on the service. It’s not worth having your own chat line service if when you call it there are no callers on to chat to.