Friday, October 13, 2006
Arts and the Long Tail
The idea behind "The Long Tail" is that while something may have big profits to begin with, in general the revenues drop quickly and then levels off IF the product has any kind of lasting power and ultimately the residual profits amount to more than the original big hit.
The Bible probably has the longest tail of all.
The arts are curious because many offerings are ephemeral. The Theatre does not have a long tail at all. Nor do gallery offerings. Products that tend to have a long tail include the movies (through DVDs), literature, and music (in the form of CDs and DVDs).
I've been thinking alot about the Long Tail in the last few weeks because of what has occured for me posting on Revver. Initally I might get a few bucks in revenue on a video when I post it. After posting MANY videos, each continues to make a little money, but none of them make significant amounts of cash on its own. The revenue from the tail will end up being much higher than the initial hit.
The Bible probably has the longest tail of all.
The arts are curious because many offerings are ephemeral. The Theatre does not have a long tail at all. Nor do gallery offerings. Products that tend to have a long tail include the movies (through DVDs), literature, and music (in the form of CDs and DVDs).
I've been thinking alot about the Long Tail in the last few weeks because of what has occured for me posting on Revver. Initally I might get a few bucks in revenue on a video when I post it. After posting MANY videos, each continues to make a little money, but none of them make significant amounts of cash on its own. The revenue from the tail will end up being much higher than the initial hit.
