Pantip.com
Encyclopedia
Pantip.com is a popular Thai-language
website and discussion forum. As of April 2008, Pantip.com was one of the top 10 website
s in Thailand
, along with rival Thai portal Sanook.com. Discussions about Thai politics
and current events on Pantip.com's topic boards are often cited in the Thai press
, particularly in such English-language newspapers as the Bangkok Post
and The Nation
, as a gauge of the public's mood about various issues.
At the beginning, the site gained its popularity from people's misunderstanding of its name which is similar (and identical in English spelling) to Bangkok's famous IT
shopping center, Pantip Plaza
, however it is in no way affiliated with the mall (The name is actually styled in Thai as พันทิป, meaning a thousand tips.) Nevertheless, there is a significant IT-related community there.
Sanook.com, Pantip.com was one of the first websites established in Thailand when the Internet
was being introduced in the country. As opposed to Sanook.com's lucrative buyout from MWeb, a now-defunct dot com company, Wanchat has no plans to sell the site.
, MBK Center
, Silom and Chatuchak Weekend Market
. Topics for discussion include politics
, religion
, celebrities
and education
as well as film
s, sport
s and outdoor recreation.
Other features include LiveChat, Pantip Market, PanTown, Game Room, E-Card, BlogGang and Pantip Musicstation.
Alternatively, people who do not wish to apply as a member can still post using a temporary ticket-pass that only requires an e-mail address. But the ticket-pass holders do not enjoy some special benefits of the members such as intra-communication tools and blog.
Recently, in Ratchadumnern table, where heated and uncivil political debates often occur, Pantip.com has started requiring that every post there must be accompanied by member login only. Thus, everyone who wishes to post in Ratchadumnern table must have member login name. However, the problem of using false identification or IDs of other people to apply for membership is still pervasive.
", which are actively enforced. Offensive posts can be reported to the webmaster
, who may remove the offending post to the "trash" page, where the pages can still be viewed and commented on. The rules are:
Some people have found fame after they became involved on Pantip.com's boards and have nurtured their reputations authorities on writing, art, photography, pet ownership and various other topics. Several posters have landed book deals as a consequence of writing on Pantip.com.
On the other hand, a lot of people have become infamous when their blunders were exposed. Examples include writers who plagiarize
the works of others, famous quiz show
s such as Fan Pan Tae
and Tod Sa Gun Game
which give wrong answers repeatedly, unscrupulous companies that cheat customers or individuals who use Pantip.com strictly for self-promotion.
While Pantip.com members have different views ideologies, sometimes they will come together to protect fellow members whom they think are unfairly attacked from outsiders. The most prominent example is a careless teenager who inadvertently posted a nude picture of a Thai actress
(although he covered her breasts before posting) which landed him in a police station's cell The whole Chalermthai movie and entertainment board, where the picture was posted, banded together to defend the poster whom they think was just a scapegoat in a plot to raise publicity
for the actress' next movie. The actress and her company was heavily criticized and there were a collective threat not to see any of her future movies. Finally after the poster made a public apology, she dropped the case and he was set free.
Thai language
Thai , also known as Central Thai and Siamese, is the national and official language of Thailand and the native language of the Thai people, Thailand's dominant ethnic group. Thai is a member of the Tai group of the Tai–Kadai language family. Historical linguists have been unable to definitively...
website and discussion forum. As of April 2008, Pantip.com was one of the top 10 website
Website
A website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...
s in Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
, along with rival Thai portal Sanook.com. Discussions about Thai politics
Politics of Thailand
The politics of Thailand are currently conducted within the framework of a constitutional monarchy, whereby the Prime Minister is the head of government and a hereditary monarch is head of state. The judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislative branches.Thai kingdoms and late...
and current events on Pantip.com's topic boards are often cited in the Thai press
Media of Thailand
Thailand has a well-developed media sector, especially by Southeast Asian standards. Compared to other countries in the region, the Thai media have historically been relatively free, although the government has always exercised considerable control, especially over broadcast media...
, particularly in such English-language newspapers as the Bangkok Post
Bangkok Post
The Bangkok Post is a broadsheet, English-language daily newspaper published in Bangkok, Thailand. The first issue was sold on August 1, 1946. It had four pages and cost 1 baht, a considerable amount at the time....
and The Nation
The Nation (Thailand)
The Nation is a broadsheet, English-language daily newspaper founded in 1971 and published in Bangkok, Thailand, and is owned by the Nation Multimedia Group.The Nation is a member of the Asia News Network...
, as a gauge of the public's mood about various issues.
At the beginning, the site gained its popularity from people's misunderstanding of its name which is similar (and identical in English spelling) to Bangkok's famous IT
Information technology
Information technology is the acquisition, processing, storage and dissemination of vocal, pictorial, textual and numerical information by a microelectronics-based combination of computing and telecommunications...
shopping center, Pantip Plaza
Pantip Plaza
Pantip Plaza is an indoor IT shopping mall located on New Phetchaburi Road in Ratchathewi district, Bangkok, Thailand. The sale of counterfeit software and DVDs is one of the reasons for its success and notoriety.-Trading hours:...
, however it is in no way affiliated with the mall (The name is actually styled in Thai as พันทิป, meaning a thousand tips.) Nevertheless, there is a significant IT-related community there.
History
Pantip.com was founded in 1997 by Wanchat Padungrat, an electrical engineer. He holds directorship and ownership of the site. Along with the popular Thai-language portalWeb portal
A web portal or links page is a web site that functions as a point of access to information in the World Wide Web. A portal presents information from diverse sources in a unified way....
Sanook.com, Pantip.com was one of the first websites established in Thailand when the Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
was being introduced in the country. As opposed to Sanook.com's lucrative buyout from MWeb, a now-defunct dot com company, Wanchat has no plans to sell the site.
Tables
One of the features of the site is the "Café", which consists of 20 "tables" for discussions on a variety of topics. The tables are named after famous places in Thailand, such as Siam SquareSiam Square
Siam Square is a shopping and entertainment area in the Siam District of Bangkok, Thailand. The area connects to other shopping centres and links to the other shopping districts by sky bridge, such as Siam Center/Siam Discovery Center, MBK Center, Siam Paragon, Ratchaprasong shopping district and...
, MBK Center
MBK Center
MBK Center, also known as Mahboonkrong , is a large shopping mall in Bangkok, Thailand. At eight stories high, the center hosts around 2,000 stores and services, including the 4-story Tokyu department store, restaurants and entertainment....
, Silom and Chatuchak Weekend Market
Chatuchak weekend market
Chatuchak weekend market in Bangkok is the largest market in Thailand. Frequently called J.J., it covers over 35 acres and contains upwards of 5,000 stalls. It is estimated that the market receives 200,000 visitors each day. Most stalls only open on Saturdays and Sundays though Jatujak Plaza,...
. Topics for discussion include politics
Politics
Politics is a process by which groups of people make collective decisions. The term is generally applied to the art or science of running governmental or state affairs, including behavior within civil governments, but also applies to institutions, fields, and special interest groups such as the...
, religion
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
, celebrities
Celebrity
A celebrity, also referred to as a celeb in popular culture, is a person who has a prominent profile and commands a great degree of public fascination and influence in day-to-day media...
and education
Education
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
as well as film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
s, sport
Sport
A Sport is all forms of physical activity which, through casual or organised participation, aim to use, maintain or improve physical fitness and provide entertainment to participants. Sport may be competitive, where a winner or winners can be identified by objective means, and may require a degree...
s and outdoor recreation.
Other features include LiveChat, Pantip Market, PanTown, Game Room, E-Card, BlogGang and Pantip Musicstation.
Membership system
Pantip.com has a belief that its members should be held accountable for what they write on its webboard in order to avoid unpleasant exchanges that often bring about defamation, rudeness, or simply unhealthy cyber environment for its members. Thus, since 2004 it has started requiring that new members must provide their IDs (Thai National ID or passport number) in order to subscribe for a membership . At first, this measure had received a lot of criticism, with concerns about privacy and security of personal information. However, such criticisms have subsided as there has been no indication of any harm as of yet. Apparently, Pantip.com is one of the few, if any, online webboards that have such stiff requirements involving personal identity of the member. According to Wanchat, the outcome of such measure is quite satisfying, the members are contented with the improved quality of the discussion and the membership has grown.Alternatively, people who do not wish to apply as a member can still post using a temporary ticket-pass that only requires an e-mail address. But the ticket-pass holders do not enjoy some special benefits of the members such as intra-communication tools and blog.
Recently, in Ratchadumnern table, where heated and uncivil political debates often occur, Pantip.com has started requiring that every post there must be accompanied by member login only. Thus, everyone who wishes to post in Ratchadumnern table must have member login name. However, the problem of using false identification or IDs of other people to apply for membership is still pervasive.
Netiquette
The forum has rules, or "netiquetteNetiquette
Netiquette is a set of social conventions that facilitate interaction over networks, ranging from Usenet and mailing lists to blogs and forums. These rules were described in IETF RFC 1855. However, like many Internet phenomena, the concept and its application remain in a state of flux, and vary...
", which are actively enforced. Offensive posts can be reported to the webmaster
Webmaster
A webmaster , also called a web architect, web developer, site author, or website administrator is a person responsible for maintaining one or many websites...
, who may remove the offending post to the "trash" page, where the pages can still be viewed and commented on. The rules are:
- Messages critical of the kingBhumibol AdulyadejBhumibol Adulyadej is the current King of Thailand. He is known as Rama IX...
and the royal family are absolutely prohibited. - No foul language or sexually explicit content.
- No insults or posts that may cause a person to be hated.
- No posts that are solely intended to cause quarrels or chaos.
- No negative attacks on religions or the teachings of any religion.
- Don't use pseudonyms that resemble somebody else's real name with the intention of misleading others.
- No messages that might cause conflicts among educational institutions.
- No posts containing personal data of others, e-mail addresses or telephone numbers.
Famous members
There are people from all walks of life who participate in Pantip.com as members, ticket pass-holders, or just readers. Among them are many famous people in Thai society who publicly acknowledge their membership in Pantip.com. They include:- Police Colonel Yannapol Youngyuen – Commander, the Bureau of Technology and Cyber Crime, Department Special Investigation (DSI).
- M.C. Chatrichalerm YukolChatrichalerm YukolHis Serene Highness Prince Chatrichalerm Yukol is a Thai film director, screenwriter and film producer. A prolific director since the 1970s, among his films is the 2001 historical epic, The Legend of Suriyothai. A member of the Thai royal family, his official royal title is Mom Chao, or M.C., the...
– Film director, screenwriter and producer. - Khunying Winita Dithiyon (Wor Winichaikul) – Prolific novelist and academic.
- Chiranan Pitpreecha – Poet, writer, translator, S.E.A. Write AwardS.E.A. Write AwardThe S.E.A. Write Award, or Southeast Asian Writers Award, is an award that has been presented annually since 1979 to poets and writers in Southeast Asia....
winner. - Saran Maitreewech (Dang Trin) – Best-selling writer on BuddhistBuddhismBuddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha . The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th...
themes. - Sombat Boonngamanong (Bor Kor Lai Chud) – NGO activist, Founder of Mirror Art Group, Bannok.com.
- Kanok Ratwongsakul – News anchorman.
- Maj-Gen Kittisak Ratprasert – Former chief aide-de-camp to King Bhumibol AdulyadejBhumibol AdulyadejBhumibol Adulyadej is the current King of Thailand. He is known as Rama IX...
, politician.
Some people have found fame after they became involved on Pantip.com's boards and have nurtured their reputations authorities on writing, art, photography, pet ownership and various other topics. Several posters have landed book deals as a consequence of writing on Pantip.com.
On the other hand, a lot of people have become infamous when their blunders were exposed. Examples include writers who plagiarize
Plagiarism
Plagiarism is defined in dictionaries as the "wrongful appropriation," "close imitation," or "purloining and publication" of another author's "language, thoughts, ideas, or expressions," and the representation of them as one's own original work, but the notion remains problematic with nebulous...
the works of others, famous quiz show
Quiz Show
Quiz Show is a 1994 American historical drama film produced and directed by Robert Redford. Adapted by Paul Attanasio from Richard Goodwin's memoir Remembering America, the film is based upon the Twenty One quiz show scandal of the 1950s...
s such as Fan Pan Tae
Fan Pan Tae
Fan Pan Tae is a quiz show of Thailand. On air : Friday 10.10PM - 12.10AM Royal Thai Army Radio & Television, Channel 5 Presenter : Phanya Nirunkul, Tankhun Jitissara and Ek Himsakul ....
and Tod Sa Gun Game
Tod Sa Gun Game
The Tod Sa Gun Game is a Thai game show produced by Workpoint Entertainment. It was the 2003 runner-up, and the 2005 winner, of the "best game or quiz show on Asian television" award....
which give wrong answers repeatedly, unscrupulous companies that cheat customers or individuals who use Pantip.com strictly for self-promotion.
While Pantip.com members have different views ideologies, sometimes they will come together to protect fellow members whom they think are unfairly attacked from outsiders. The most prominent example is a careless teenager who inadvertently posted a nude picture of a Thai actress
Bongkoj Khongmalai
Bongkoj Khongmalai , nickname "Tak" , is a Thai film actress. Films she has appeared in include Tom-Yum-Goong. She portrayed a young Thai woman forced into prostitution in Australia who comes to the aid of the film's hero, Tony Jaa. Alternate spellings of her name include Bongkot Kongmalai and...
(although he covered her breasts before posting) which landed him in a police station's cell The whole Chalermthai movie and entertainment board, where the picture was posted, banded together to defend the poster whom they think was just a scapegoat in a plot to raise publicity
Public relations
Public relations is the actions of a corporation, store, government, individual, etc., in promoting goodwill between itself and the public, the community, employees, customers, etc....
for the actress' next movie. The actress and her company was heavily criticized and there were a collective threat not to see any of her future movies. Finally after the poster made a public apology, she dropped the case and he was set free.