I did use the chat room frequently earlier in the year, but there was some unfriendliness, not only in my conversations, and there was a bit of discomfort when some people wanted to go into another room to get away from someone who was in the main room. It was becoming a little "clicky".
I assume all of that sorted itself out, and I often look in to see if there is anyone in there, but usually there is not. I was not sure if that was because of the time difference as I live in Australia or whether it was just not getting used anymore.
I think its a great idea if used properly, but, unfortunately, it seems to cause a bit of conflict which can make some people unhappy.