Prank Calls and The Internet
The earliest known streaming prank call on the internet was posted by Michael Biggins, who is known by his prank caller / radio station host name "Blackout". It was broadcast in real audio 1.0 format (14.4 baud modem speed) in 1995. His was also the first interactive internet radio show primarily based on prank calls to broadcast live and take callers suggestions on pranks. The first world wide notability of a 'prank call site' being Blackout.com (Blackout's Box), and the site remains online to this day.
The internet radio station PrankCall Radio (www.prankcallradio.net) is the largest web-site that still continuously broadcasts prank phone calls as they happen live on the internet. Since its creation by "DJ FooDStamP" in 1997, they have completed over 185,000 prank phone calls and broadcast them to over 5 million people worldwide.
Ever since the opportunity has been available, there have been multiple internet radio stations dedicated to prank calls. Most of them feature a so-called "rotation" of prank calls which is a constant broadcast of various prank calls submitted by the community, usually streamed from a SHOUTcast server host. Software such as Ventrilo has allowed prank calls to be carried out to a more private user-base, however, in real-time.
The internet has allowed many people to share their own personal prank calls and develop into communities. Prank calls can be carried out in many ways; live or pre-recorded. Sites such as Stickam and Ustream allow hosts to carry out prank calls live to thousands of listeners, who can also chat and discuss on-goings in real-time. The use of social networking and the popularity of user generated content also allows these prank calls to spread and popularity to grow. For example, the popular internet series "PrankCallsX" features pre-recorded prank calls to fan-suggested businesses.
Although prank call communities are still relatively small-scale compared to FM stations that feature live pranks, it is a growing community on the internet today and many new communities are developing all the time. In a recent post by the leading weblog on VoIP a service was reviewed but users were asked to be responsilbe. Similar concerns have been shared by other leading weblogs, which points to how actively prank dialing services are growing.
Reaction videos and photo montages are also popular ways of sharing prank phone calls via video sharing websites such as YouTube.
Pranknet is an anonymous prank calling virtual community responsible for tens of thousands of dollars in damage to hotels and fast food restaurants. Posing as authority figures, such as fire alarm company representatives and hotel corporate managers, Pranknet participants called unsuspecting employees and customers in the United States via Skype and tricked them into damaging property, setting off fire sprinklers and other humiliating acts such as disrobing. They also post fraudulent ads on Craigslist, and then shout racial epithets and make violent threats of rape and murder against the people who call them to respond to the ads. Pranknet members listen in real-time and discuss the progress together in a private chat room. The group, who flaunted their anonymity, were outed during an investigation by The Smoking Gun.
Read more about this topic: Prank Call
Famous quotes containing the word calls:
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