The Long Tail Effect and Copyright Law: Nurturing a Niche Segment.
Authored by Sakshi Lulla. Sakshi is a law student at Nirma University, Ahmedabad.
The long tail theory postulated by Chris Anderson is a marketing technique that primarily focuses on the importance of niche creations, i.e. individualised and non-popular creations. It emphasises the fact that retailers can make considerable profits by selling small amounts of hard-to-find/individualised products often called niche goods, rather than selling high quantities of a limited number of popular products.
This theory can be appositely contextualised in a copyright scenario where it is often difficult for independent creators to get mass recognition or even to enter the market. However, the internet has obliterated the socio-economic barriers of IP creation and facilitated such creators in reaching out to their target audience. Hence, the theory also holds substantial relevance in the copyright regime. Artists like Shawn Mendes and Charlie Puth are the prime examples of such independent niche creators who wouldn’t have been able to contribute to society or get recognition if the internet didn’t provide them platforms like YouTube. It's hard to imagine independent creators like BB Ki Vines gaining popularity of thousands as they have now, without platforms like YouTube.
Appositely, the internet is bringing out the rich culture and tradition of countries by giving various classical and folk artists a medium to contribute to the public. It is incubating a cultural revolution by breaking social, financial, or geographical barriers that prevented such independent creators from entering the market. It's hard to imagine now but there was a time when creation of works had to be sanctioned by the sovereign and only then was the artist permitted to produce. Due to the internet revolution, the benefit goes to both the creator as well as the public. On one hand, the creators have been able to bring their work to the public and get recognition for their skills. On the other hand, the public has come to enjoy vibrant creative works from mindless entertainment to DIY kokedamas. For instance, AR Rahman gave a chance to the Nooran Sisters, who sung famous tracks like Phataka Guddi and continue to create Sufi music that symbolises the nation’s fabric.
One of the primary objectives of the IP law is to provide incentives to create and serve the interests of the public. Relevantly, the validation and encouragement that independent niche creators receive after broadcasting their work incentivises them to create more and also give a fillip to other such creators to bring their talent to the market. As argued by various IP jurists, such original and innovative content creation causes value addition to the public, thereby fructifying the aim of IP Law.
On a tangential note, such long tail is nurturing a nepotism free environment where merit is the primary determinant for surviving the cut-throat competition. Additionally, due to this merit-based approach, the consumer choice will be the primary yardstick, if not the only, for assessing the success of a creation and label/brand launching it won’t make much of a difference. Even statistics depict that economies are likely to have a paradigm shift from mass-market buying to niche buying. There is a high probability of people preferring customised and unique goods over mainstream hits. Amazon’s sales statistics show that a significant proportion of Amazon’s sales, come from obscure books that may not be available in conventional brick and mortar shops. Amazon can offer niche products hence it can appeal to the diverse interests of different customers.
Internet: A Paradox?
The long tail theory also coincides with the ‘Streisand effect’ which is a social phenomenon that arises when an effort to conceal, delete or censor information, often through the Internet, has the unintended result of advertising it all the more. It is an established fact that organisations that operate in a creative setting, like music, books, movies, etc do face a tension between facilitating product discovery and curbing illegal file-sharing i.e., piracy and copyright issues.
Copyright is bundle of exclusive rights which its owner gets. Such rights include the right to distribute, adapt, reprint, translate, communicate and perform the work in public.
While digitisation has led to changes in the copyright environment in the past decade by considerably dropping the cost of copying and sharing creative work, the Streisand effect has ensured that due credit is given to the real creator. This was illustrated in the recent brawl involving Badshah’s album ‘Genda Phool’ where Badshah failed to give credit to the original veteran Bengali Singer. The controversy got such attraction that Badshah had to acknowledge the folk singer’s contribution and pay him 5 lakh rupees. It is ironic that the artist who Badshah did not give credit, got viral popularity in such a short span due to the internet. People wrote blogs about the veteran singer’s work, videos were made on him on YouTube as well.
It wouldn’t be incorrect to say that cultural and folk music wasn’t as recognised before it got mass attention globally due to the emergence of the internet. For instance, Bengali music wasn’t nationally famous until recently, when people came to know about the song “Boroloker Biti Lo” written by a Bengali veteran. By the same token, in order to develop a liking or appreciate creativity, it is incidental to get exposed to it or know about it first. The internet is serving as a platform that enables us to explore fresh and novel content from diverse creators. This situation has given a boost to the Intellectual Property regime that strives to enrich creativity and innovation. Incentivising, preserving, and protecting niche products is all the more important during this global pandemic because due to stay home orders people are exploring untouched and unique streams more than ever.
