The Long Tail

There are interesting rumblings over at The Long Tail. This array of Long Tail Definitions is especially tasty.

Interestingly, the long tail has long dominated activity in the [academic] research community and is a key factor contributing to its vitality and diversity. As the traditional richness/reach frontier has been demolished -- thanks to the increasing volume of academic literature accessible digitally -- the potential for previously obscure works to exert powerful influence is greater than any time in history.

Yet, this makes me wonder: what is happening over at The Long Tail that adds additional variance explained to what Evans and colleagues have written in their HBR piece, or book Blown to Bits? Curious.