Comments on: The Long Tail by Chris Anderson http://fistfulofeuros.net/afoe/culture/the-long-tail-by-chris-anderson/ European Opinion Thu, 20 Nov 2008 13:39:54 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.3 By: Doug http://fistfulofeuros.net/afoe/culture/the-long-tail-by-chris-anderson/#comment-17110 Doug Tue, 13 Feb 2007 19:25:32 +0000 http://fistfulofeuros.net/wordpress/?p=2839#comment-17110 That's the key question for me, Martin. In how many sectors can the marginal cost of an additional item be driven to nearly nil? All of the long-tail businesses have a digital front end, and several of them strive to be digital all the way through. At that point, there's no reason not to carry everything. That’s the key question for me, Martin. In how many sectors can the marginal cost of an additional item be driven to nearly nil?

All of the long-tail businesses have a digital front end, and several of them strive to be digital all the way through. At that point, there’s no reason not to carry everything.

]]> By: Martin Wisse http://fistfulofeuros.net/afoe/culture/the-long-tail-by-chris-anderson/#comment-17109 Martin Wisse Tue, 13 Feb 2007 15:53:34 +0000 http://fistfulofeuros.net/wordpress/?p=2839#comment-17109 "In other words, there is a market for books that practically no store carries, and that market is as large as the entire bookselling market in stores." The crucial difference being, that that first market can be satisfied by stocking a relatively small number of books, while to reach the whole potential long tail market you'd need a bookstore as big as, well, Amazon. Getting 50,000 sales through stocking 500 books is much more profitable than getting 50,000 sales through stocking 50,000 books... “In other words, there is a market for books that practically no store carries, and that market is as large as the entire bookselling market in stores.”

The crucial difference being, that that first market can be satisfied by stocking a relatively small number of books, while to reach the whole potential long tail market you’d need a bookstore as big as, well, Amazon.

Getting 50,000 sales through stocking 500 books is much more profitable than getting 50,000 sales through stocking 50,000 books…

]]> By: Tobias http://fistfulofeuros.net/afoe/culture/the-long-tail-by-chris-anderson/#comment-17108 Tobias Mon, 12 Feb 2007 06:17:25 +0000 http://fistfulofeuros.net/wordpress/?p=2839#comment-17108 I know how you feel about the book. I wish it contained more information than was readily available when I wrote my MBA thesis about digistal distribution in the music industry in 2000. And he does never really touch the critical issue of property in world of marginal copying costs/zero distribution costs. It's partially a fun read, but in my opinion, for a popular introduction into information economics, Carl Shapiro and Hal Varian's "Information Rules" is the book to read. I know how you feel about the book. I wish it contained more information than was readily available when I wrote my MBA thesis about digistal distribution in the music industry in 2000. And he does never really touch the critical issue of property in world of marginal copying costs/zero distribution costs. It’s partially a fun read, but in my opinion, for a popular introduction into information economics, Carl Shapiro and Hal Varian’s “Information Rules” is the book to read.

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