But on the other hand, it’s also clear that the Long Tail can drive profit for distributors, *if* they can reduce their content acquisition and distribution costs for less popular content to near-zero, and *if* they can help consumers effectively sift through all that content. Amazon.com has managed to do both of these things. Kongregate seems to be doing both of these things (though it’s telling that Kongregate is also actively seeking out more polished content). The Long Tail also has important, positive social/cultural consequences that are rarely discussed in debates like these.

Anyway, definitely deserves a longer post.

From the article: “But my research indicates otherwise. Although no one disputes the lengthening of the tail (clearly, more obscure products are being made available for purchase every day), the tail is likely to be extremely flat and populated by titles that are mostly a diversion for consumers whose appetite for true blockbusters continues to grow. It is therefore highly disputable that much money can be made in the tail.”