Systems and methods for scheduled video chat sessions

A system for digitally engaging a celebrity with fans through virtual meetings, the system comprising:

• a first client device associated with the celebrity that is operable to participate in a virtual meet-and-greet that involves a series of scheduled, private one-on-one video chats with a set of fans, the first client device comprising at least a display, a camera, and a microphone;
• one or more second client devices associated with the set of fans, each of the one or more second client devices being operable to participate in one of the scheduled, private one-on-one video chats with the celebrity during a set of predetermined time slots, the predetermined time slots being non-overlapping and collectively forming a predetermined timetable, the one or more second client devices each comprising at least a display, a camera, and a microphone;
• and
• a backend server configured to facilitate the virtual meet-and-greet between the celebrity and the set of fans by (i) receiving a first audiovisual stream from the first client device, (ii) receiving one or more second audiovisual streams from the one or more second client devices, and (iii) transmitting, according to the predetermined timetable, (a) the first audiovisual stream to a particular second client device of the one or more second client devices, and (b) the second audiovisual stream of the particular second client device to the first client device,
• wherein the backend server is further configured to provide, during the virtual meet-and-greet, a virtual waiting room into which some of the one or more second client devices connect before the beginning of their predetermined time slot,
• wherein the one or more second client devices are further configured to display one or more user interface elements representative of a waiting room while connected to the virtual waiting room, and
• wherein the backend server is further configured to provide, within the virtual waiting room, a chat box with which each of the one or more second client devices connected to the virtual waiting room can enter text chat viewable by the other one or more second client devices.

A non-transitory computer readable medium having instructions stored thereon that, upon execution by at least one processor, causes a client device to perform operations comprising:

• initiating the transmission, at a first time, of a first stream of live audiovisual content captured by a camera of the client device to a backend server;
• receiving, from the backend server at the first time, a second stream of live audiovisual content captured by a computing device;
• displaying, between the first time and a second time that occurs after the first time, a virtual meet-and-greet user interface that includes the first stream of live audiovisual content and the second stream of live audiovisual content;
• displaying, between the second time and a third time that occurs after the second time, a self-portrait user interface that immediately juxtaposes at least a portion of the first stream of live audiovisual content with at least a portion of the second stream of live audiovisual content, wherein the self-portrait user interface is different from the virtual meet-and-greet user interface;
• and
• terminating the transmission, at the third time, of the first stream of live audiovisual content to the backend server.