Comments on: Personal Development DVDs http://www.stevepavlina.com/blog/2005/09/personal-development-dvds/ Personal Development for Smart People Sat, 09 May 2009 21:45:19 -0700 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: J Wynia http://www.stevepavlina.com/blog/2005/09/personal-development-dvds/comment-page-1/#comment-9603 J Wynia Fri, 16 Sep 2005 15:24:33 +0000 http://www.stevepavlina.com/blog/2005/09/personal-development-dvds/#comment-9603 I've been a Netflix subscriber for something like 3-4 years. I'm currently on their 8 out at a time plan and have been for about the last year. We pretty much consider Netflix the "major network" in our house with the satellite channels all in 2nd or worse place. Because their "shelf space" is only restricted by warehouse scale storage and not actual retail shelves, they, along with Amazon, are really making a business of the Long Tail* of DVD content. Instead of just the big hits, they can carry everything they can get their hands on. That includes personal development, tutorial stuff, documentaries, indie films, subtitled films (in whatever language combinations your culture would dictate), etc. Those titles won't be checked out nearly as often as the latest summer blockbuster, but it doesn't matter because they just won't stock as many copies. However, even the most obscure title will be rented often enough to cover the cost of them buying a copy, so they just grab everything. This moves us from a lowest common denominator distribution (what we've had for TV, movies and music for the last 80 years) to a "first choice" model where we actually get what we want** even if there aren't 30 million other people looking for it as well *Links to more info on the Long Tail http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_Tail http://longtail.typepad.com/the_long_tail/ **Lowest Common Denominator vs. First Choice http://www.wynia.org/wordpress/2005/09/16/provoke-your-thoughts-george-gilder/ I’ve been a Netflix subscriber for something like 3-4 years. I’m currently on their 8 out at a time plan and have been for about the last year. We pretty much consider Netflix the “major network” in our house with the satellite channels all in 2nd or worse place.

Because their “shelf space” is only restricted by warehouse scale storage and not actual retail shelves, they, along with Amazon, are really making a business of the Long Tail* of DVD content. Instead of just the big hits, they can carry everything they can get their hands on. That includes personal development, tutorial stuff, documentaries, indie films, subtitled films (in whatever language combinations your culture would dictate), etc. Those titles won’t be checked out nearly as often as the latest summer blockbuster, but it doesn’t matter because they just won’t stock as many copies. However, even the most obscure title will be rented often enough to cover the cost of them buying a copy, so they just grab everything.

This moves us from a lowest common denominator distribution (what we’ve had for TV, movies and music for the last 80 years) to a “first choice” model where we actually get what we want** even if there aren’t 30 million other people looking for it as well

*Links to more info on the Long Tail
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_Tail
http://longtail.typepad.com/the_long_tail/

**Lowest Common Denominator vs. First Choice
http://www.wynia.org/wordpress/2005/09/16/provoke-your-thoughts-george-gilder/

]]> By: chris sivori http://www.stevepavlina.com/blog/2005/09/personal-development-dvds/comment-page-1/#comment-9563 chris sivori Thu, 15 Sep 2005 18:47:57 +0000 http://www.stevepavlina.com/blog/2005/09/personal-development-dvds/#comment-9563 Good reason to resume my Netflix account. Just cancelled the Blockbuster service yesterday. Good reason to resume my Netflix account. Just cancelled the Blockbuster service yesterday.

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