The Long Tail (edit title)

• Rated 4 stars

“I enjoyed this book. It was well researched, clear, and an easy read. More than anything I found this book to be thought provoking. I have taken to carrying a notebook to jot down ideas on how I, or my company, can benefit from Chris Anderson's explanation of our current economy.

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• Rated 5 stars

“Does the modern world of online markets make you feel like Rip Van Winkle, who awoke from a 20-year nap to find a changed society? Author Chris Anderson has your wake-up call. With hard facts, charts and numbers, plus futuristic insights, Anderson decodes the mysteries of online marketing, Internet-based commerce and other New Age economic realities. His calculations, public feedback and extensive research offer more than just statistics for the sake of proving his point: Online retailing has a long reach into niche markets. This gives its products longevity that stores with finite shelf space can’t match, no matter how much steam they get from short-lived, blockbuster products. Anderson credibly explains the decline in box office sales and the rise of niche companies such as Netflix and iTunes. Despite a few redundancies (he believes in thorough explanations), keep on reading. You won’t mind; the text is a pleasure, written with wit, style and expertise. getAbstract recommends it to Luddites, old school business operators, anyone in entertainment or retail, and New Age Internet-based marketers (although you probably already know just how long this tail can be).”

• Rated 5 stars

“The importance of this book can't be overstated.”

• Rated 0 stars

“A Cauda Longa - Do Mercado de Massa para o Mercado de Nicho”

• Rated 3 stars

“Had to read this for a media class. I found it pretty interesting. I'm not one to read books like this, so it did a fairly good job of keeping my attention.”

• Rated 5 stars

“Crhis Anderson discorre sobre a época da abundância criada pela internet em deprimento de uma economia analógica baseada na escassez. Leitura recomendada para economistas, jornalistas, profissionais de vendas, TI e arquitetos da informação.”

• Rated 5 stars

“An absolute must read for every business leader.”

• Rated 4 stars

“This book dutifully covers the best practices involved in marketing digital products, and marketing using Social Networks. Nice.”

• Rated 4 stars

“Bottom Line: Like most business books, _The Long Tail_ is about 10 times as long as it needs to be. In this case, however, the book's "one big idea" (and few business books have more) is valuable enough that it merits at least reading the first chapter or two. You might even find yourself reading the whole thing, just to keep thinking about it.

A question. What percentage of Netflix's catalog (some 50,000 titles) do you suppose gets rented at least once per quarter? Go ahead, guess. When Anderson posed this question, I went for the the old business rule of thumb, the 80/20 split. 20%, I ventured. Not so. 98%. No, that's not a misprint. ninety-flipping-eight percent. The rule: if you give people infinite choice, they will exercise it. But why?

In a nutshell, the book argues that the natural shape of the demand curve in most instances is what's known as a long-tailed distribution. (Long-tailed distributions resemble hyperbolas--smooth, L-shaped curves which extend to infinity on the bottom-right. Use the Google if you want to see a picture of one.) Lots of attention for a few products (i.e., blockbusters) and much less--but never zero--attention for everything else.

Andersen argues convincingly that the "head" of the curve, the blockbuster section in which a few products command tons of attention, has been shrinking. That attention has been spilling into the "long tail" of the curve, making it fatter, so to speak. The reason for this is because closed, consolidated distribution networks (mass media, inefficient shipping networks, etc.) have been losing ground to more open, more granular distribution networks (think: the internet). There's now at least as much potential in the tail of the curve as in the head. And so, goodbye mass, blockbuster culture; hello individuated, atomized culture.

In all fairness to Anderson, the book does a fair job of thinking through some of the more curious implications and counterexamples of the idea. It _is_ a one-trick pony show, but at least it's a good trick.”

• Rated 5 stars

“Chris Anderson breaks down so well where media is heading. This is an excellent look against traditional economics and ways we have thought traditionally. It is so hard to think otherwise after reading this. So many of us are focused on hits when niches is really where markets are going.”