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Hot Topics: Future of Business

What will the business model look like in the next few years? Chris Anderson's book "The Long Tail" speaks about how the "future of commerce and culture isn't in hits, the high-volume head of a traditional demand curve, but in what used to be regarded as misses-the endlessly long tail of that same curve."

The following sources will discuss the "long tail" and it's effects in various industries.

Selected articles

Due to contractual arrangements, access to some articles may be restricted to the Stanford community, and subscribers of the "Library Databases" offered through the GSB Alumni's Lifelong Learning Program. Inclusion below does not imply University endorsement of the ideas expressed.

 

Free! Why $0.00 Is the Future of Business. Wired, 2/25/08
The idea that you can make money by giving something away is no longer radical.
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Chris Anderson Whipped by Long Tail. Advertising Age, 2/12/08
Chris Anderson was asked at the end of his keynote speech at the Radio Advertising Bureau conference in Atlanta which sector of the media industry was succeeding in making a business out of the long-tail, that niche-heavy part of the business where there are no major breadwinners and loaves for everyone.
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The Long Nose of Innovation. BusinessWeek Online, 1/2/08
The bulk of innovation is low-amplitude and takes place over a long period. Companies should focus on refining existing technologies as much as on creation.
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The Learning Organization Meets the Long Tail (Part 2). Chief Learning Officer, October 2007
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The Learning Organization Meets the Long Tail (Part 1). Chief Learning Officer, September 2007
The author reflects on the online digital content firm, a new tool for a learning organization. He notes that this group called the Long Tail, as described by Cris Anderson, is a powerful complement to the learning organization if managed properly but it might offset the positive effects throughout the enterprise if mismanaged.
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Brands Move Down the Long Tail to Niche Nets. Adweek, 8/13/07
When Levi Strauss launches a new online campaign next week, its ads will be found in the usual portals such as MSN and Yahoo. But the ads will also find their way to some new environments with names not well-known outside fashionista circles, sites like Kaboodle, SheFinds and Zafu.
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The Long Tail of Email Marketing. eBusinessNews, 7/24/07
Chris Anderson’s book, The Long Tail: Why the Future of Business Is Selling Less of More, contains a lesson or two for e-mail marketers.
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Internet Marketing Long Tail Bashes the "80:20" Rule. Webpronews, 6/6/07
Wired editor-in-chief Chris Anderson (also the editor of “The Long Tail: Why The Future of Business Is Selling Less of More”) was in Singapore last week for the Media Leaders Series and his Long Tail theory has put paid to Vilfredo Pareto’s 80:20 rule.
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More Articles

Can HP revolutionize the DVD? CNN, 5/2/07
HP is offering a classic long-tail service. Anybody can deliver one of the most popular movies or TV shows. The trick is to deliver the hundreds of thousands of titles that weren't big hits.
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IPTV 2007: Fastweb Wrestles With The VOD 'Long Tail'. Telecommunications Online, 3/7/07
The 'long tail' has been a recurring theme at the IPTV World Forum.
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User-generated reviews and a long tail of offerings are key to a good e-commerce site: eTail executive panel. DM News, 2/15/07
Chris Andersen's keynote on his book "The Long Tail," in which he argues that selling less of more is key, was the inspiration that led the morning panel titled "Key Industry Trends for 2007 and Their Implications for Cross-Channel Growth Strategies: A Chief Executive Officer/President Panel Discussion."
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Finding the Right Niche. Women's Wear Daily, 11/15/06
This article reports on the importance of finding the right niche to a company in the Internet age. In fashion apparel, the Internet is also playing out in a long tail.
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Will the "Long Tail" Work for Hollywood? HBS Working Knowledge, 10/23/06
Much has been written about the long tail phenomenon in the entertainment industries. Long-tail enthusiasts claim that low-selling books, CDs, and movies, which are not available in brick-and-mortar stores, will collectively take up a majority share of the market over time.
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Helping Brands Grab the Long Tail. Adweek, 9/19/06
A new service unveiled today aims to solve the riddles of the Web: If it is made up of infinite niches, why do the top sites account for most of the ad revenue?
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Handle Records, Rights and Long Tail Economies. D-Lib Magazine, 9/2006
Opinion piece written by John Erickson of Hewlett-Packard Laboratories
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Profiting from the Long Tail. Harvard Business Review, 6/2006
Companies that sell subscription model, "all-you-can-eat," digital content are boosting profits by carefully manipulating consumption.
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From Niches to Riches: Anatomy of the Long Tail. MIT Sloan Management Review, Summer 2006
The article examines the phenomenon known as "The Long Tail," which refers to online sales of products which traditional brick-and-mortar stores do not carry.
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Libraries and the Long Tail. D-Lib Magazine, 4/2006
Some Thoughts about Libraries in a Network Age.
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The Long Tail. Wired Magazine, 10/2004
Forget squeezing millions from a few megahits at the top of the charts. The future of entertainment is in the millions of niche markets at the shallow end of the bitstream.
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