The internet can bring together people with common interests through online communities. They could be social networks or grassroots organizations, as well as customer communities. Our society is naturally social, which makes it logical to connect with other people online. Communities are formed through relationships, whether we have them directly or indirectly. However, how we do so differs.

In 2006, web expert Jakob NielsenProposedBased on inequality of participation in online communities and social media, there is a rule called 90-9-1. According to Nielsen, in most online communities, 90% of users are lurkers, i.e., those who observe, but don’t contribute, nine percent of users contribute a little and only one percent account for the most contributions.