Hong Kong Golden Forum
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Type of site
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Forum |
|---|---|
| Owner | Alive! Media & Communications Limited (subsidiary of Fevaworks) |
| Created by | Dr. Jim |
| CEO | Joe Lam |
| Website | forum.hkgolden.com |
| Commercial | Yes |
| Registration | Free |
The Golden Forum (Chinese: 香港高登討論區) is a popular Internet forum for topics related to computer hardware and software, among Internet users in Hong Kong. It has also become a more general Internet community. It is part of HKGolden.com, a computer information portal named after the Golden Computer Centre – a shopping centre of computer products in Sham Shui Po, Kowloon, Hong Kong. Access to the website is blocked to users in the Chinese Mainland by the Great Firewall of China.
In the late 1990s, due to the popularity of the Internet, competition drove stores online. In an effort to protect consumers, the traders' association of the Golden Computer Centre launched the website with information about computer hardware and software prices, thus increasing the transparency of the marketplace.
In the early 2000s, a discussion forum was launched to complement the website. It was originally open in structure and without topic demarcation, and destined for computing matters. Very soon, its topics became broader-based, the discussion area segregated into "computing" and "chill" areas, each with their own topics or "stations". On-line discussion groups formed. The community, formed by ordinary citizens as well as computer geeks, would be interested in all manner of local topics. In the course of discussions, slang would be widely employed. Neologisms would often develop, and these would quickly pass virally into colloquial usage.
Topics are themed by hobby groups, and include 'Movies', 'Photography', 'Motoring', 'Music', 'Finance', 'Sport', 'Political' , etc. Although the name "Hong Kong Golden Forum" applies to the whole, this name is now usually synonymous with the "Off-topic station" within the forum due to its runaway popularity. At one time, forum members formed themselves into registered cliques, the most prominent ones being "Big mouth" and "DIY". HKgolden has become an influential media from which topics and exclusive news are frequently being reported on magazine and newspaper. Many people believe that reporters, police and even government may be active in the forum to investigate popular culture and public opinion.
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Wikipedia