Kim Dotcom Launches #MegaChat: Video Calling Available Now. Text Chat and Video Conferencing to Follow

Kim Dotcom, who is known as the person behind Megaupload, has released his newest product named MegaChat. The beta service offers video calling features to users and will soon be capable of text chat and video conferencing. Since it is browser-based, users don't have to download or install anything in order to start using the service.

MegaChat is being positioned as a strong competition to Skype. Its main draw is that it allows end-to-end encryption. Skype, on its part, has divulged that it has given NSA the access to monitor conversations of its users.

Kim Dotcom started talking about MegaChat in December. He believes it is bound to dominate Skype and that users can trust it as a secure alternative. In other words, it's totally free from being targeted by the NSA surveillance team. This collaboration between Skype and the NSA was revealed in documents obtained from whistleblower Edward Snowden. According to the documents, Skype cooperated with the NSA when the latter needed to monitor the users' exchange of communication.

"Retweet if you like to try our new, browser-based & encrypted #MegaChat beta TODAY #SkypeKiller," said Dotcom in a tweet.

MegaChat also has a file sharing feature wherein users can share secured and encrypted files while having a video chat. The service is being rolled out feature-by-feature with a few bugs met along the way. "We are releasing #MegaChat beta step by step. Starting with video calling today. Text chat & video conferencing will follow soon," tweeted Kim Dotcom.

MegaChat is still in beta, but registered users of Mega.nz, the company's new domain, can now try it for free. According to Dotcom, MegaChat users logged in more than half a million encrypted video calls within the initial hour since the service was launched.

For those who want to try MegaChat, whether they are curious or they value security, they can visit Mega and register or login using their account. The chat icon is nestled on the left toolbar. By clicking it, users can already begin to have an audio or video call with anyone among their contacts who also have MegaChat accounts.

Kim Dotcom is aware that the service may have some bugs so he would really like to keep informed. He is offering a reward to anyone who would report any bugs encountered.

"#Mega offers a security bounty again. Please report any security flaw to us. We'll fix it and reward you. Thanks for helping," said Kim Dotcom in a tweet.

Photo: Matthew Hurst | Flickr