review: The Long Tail

From: Jing Su <jingsu_REMOVE_THIS_FROM_EMAIL_FIRST_at_cs.toronto.edu>
Date: Mon, 28 Nov 2005 00:25:46 -0500

Though not a scientific paper, "The Long Tail" presents interesting
evidence to show why Internet providers are able to capture
significant revenue outside of the mainstream.

In summary, this article summarizes the long-tailed distribution of
popularity for books, movies, and music products. In the physical
world, due to limited shelving space, companies have hyped and
marketed the large head of the long-tail, in hopes of capturing
significant value from the limited physical space. However, online
retailers do not have such limitation. Without physical shelving
space limitation, online retailers have developed methods for
encouraging purchase in the heavy-tail region. The cumulative effect
is significant sales and profits from this heavy-tail region;
something traditional retailers have been unable to capture.

What is interesting about this topic is that the media at the focus of
these market effects are immutable objects. In essence, it makes the
desirable trends discussed in this paper very much similar to the
request and download trends found in peer to peer networks.
Received on Mon Nov 28 2005 - 00:25:54 EST

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