Here's some research suggesting that the Long Tail isn't just for weirdos like us, but that pretty much everyone dips into the long tail occasionally: http://m

Here's some research suggesting that the Long Tail isn't just for weirdos like us, but that pretty much everyone dips into the long tail occasionally: http://messymatters.com/longtail http://messymatters.com/longtail In other words, businesses like Blockbuster figured that since only a small fraction of demand is in the long tail that it's not worth the large cost of supplying it. But just because there's only a small fraction of demand in the long tail doesn't mean that there's only a small fraction of customers who care about it. That's because it's not, as previous conventional wisdom had it, that most people stick to the popular stuff and there are a fringe of eccentrics who prefer the long tail. Rather, most people most of the time like the popular stuff and, occasionally, like long-tail stuff. Conclusion: Total demand for the long tail is low; total customers who care about it is high. So ignoring the long tail means alienating most customers.