|
I almost never rent movies, but even I keep thinking I should get a Netflix membership just because of the deeper selection. The "long tail" is the biggest advantage, and why I buy almost everything online these days. Whenever I set out to buy things in person at a brick-n-mortar store I am disappointed. Clothing, computer stuff, all my hobbies, pretty much anything I care deeply enough about - I have become extraordinarily picky, and the internet has allowed me to do that. Between mega-stores like Borders and B&N, used bookstores, libraries, etc, books have always had a longer tail than most marketplaces, even in the brick and mortar world, but the various eReaders make that tail longer still, with all the indy stuff, the backlists, etc.
At least for Americans, and for an increasing number of other countries, we swim in a sea of advertising and are culturally indoctrinated to define our identities through consumerism. You are what you buy, your life is a work of art defined by *things*. Not saying it's good, but it is what it is, and within that framework we all want that long tail, so we can feel unique, because we buy different stuff. The internet offers us that long tail, in spades.
There will always be a place for Sony's ereaders out on that long tail, if they want it. Moving up from the tail is the hard part.
|