Tales of tails: sales distribution and the role of retail channels in the German book market

Lüke, Daniel
A icle — Published Ve sion
Tales o ails: sales dis ibu ion and he ole o e ail
channels in he Ge man book ma ke
Jou nal o Cul u al Economics
Sugges ed Ci a ion: Lüke, Daniel (2025) : Tales o ails: sales dis ibu ion and he ole o e ail
channels in he Ge man book ma ke , Jou nal o Cul u al Economics, ISSN 1573-6997, Sp inge US,
New Yo k, Vol. 49, Iss. 4, pp. 939-961,
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Jou nal o Cul u al Economics (2025) 49:939–961
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ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Tales o  ails: sales dis ibu ion and he ole o  e ail
channels in heGe man book ma ke
DanielLüke1
Recei ed: 28 Oc obe 2024 / Accep ed: 19 June 2025 / Published online: 14 July 2025
© The Au ho (s) 2025
Abs ac
This pape examines he sales dis ibu ion and gen e composi ion o he Ge man
book ma ke ac oss di e en e ail channels—e-comme ce, chain books o es, and
independen books o es—du ing he pe iod 2011–2018. Using a unique da ase o
weekly sales da a co e ing app oxima ely 50,000 op-selling book i les, he s udy
challenges he economic ele ance o he “long ail" e ec , which posi s ha niche
p oduc s gain subs an ial ma ke sha e h ough digi aliza ion. Ou indings e eal
ha bo h online and o line sales a e p edominan ly concen a ed on a ew bes -sell-
ing i les, wi h negligible con ibu ions om he “long ail” p oduc s. Howe e , a
“middle ail" o mode a ely popula books, mo e p e alen in online sales and inde-
penden books o es, sugges s di e se consump ion pa e ns no adequa ely cap u ed
by adi ional models ocusing on he ex emes o sales dis ibu ions. We also iden-
i y subs an ial di e ences in gen e composi ion and book a ibu es ac oss chan-
nels, add essing a gap in he exis ing li e a u e. Fo ins ance, chain s o es exhibi
highe concen a ions o bes selle s, whe eas independen books o es ea u e a mo e
a ied selec ion o olde i les. These indings imply ha consume p e e ences a y
signi ican ly ac oss e ail channels, indica ing limi ed subs i u abili y be ween hem.
Keywo ds Sales concen a ion· Book ma ke · Re ail channels· Long ail·
e-comme ce· B ick-and-mo a e ail
JEL Classi ica ion L81· L82· Z11
* Daniel Lüke
[email p o ec ed]
1 Chai o Indus ial O ganiza ion, Regula ion andAn i us , Jus us Liebig Uni e si y Giessen,
Liche S asse 62, 35390Giessen, Ge many
940
Jou nal o Cul u al Economics (2025) 49:939–961
1 In oduc ion
The impac o digi iza ion on sales dis ibu ion and consump ion pa e ns in ma ke s
o expe ience goods, such as books, has been widely s udied. This pape p o ides new
empi ical e idence on wo dimensions o he book ma ke : he deg ee o sales concen-
a ion and he a ia ion in sales pa e ns ac oss e ail channels. Using a comp ehensi e
da a se o book sales in Ge many, we i s in es iga e he dis ibu ion o sales, e ealing
p onounced concen a ions on he op-selling books1 and ex emely low sales coun s o
niche book i les ac oss bo h online and o line e ail channels. This p onounced igh -
skewness o he sales dis ibu ion ques ions he economic ele ance o he so-called
long ail in consump ion. Second, we explo e how consump ion di e s be ween e ail
channels. We ind signi ican di e ences in he gen es o he books bough h ough
a ious channels. A mo e g anula analysis e eals dispa i ies no only be ween e-com-
me ce and b ick-and-mo a e ail bu also be ween chain s o es and independen book-
s o es wi hin he b ick-and-mo a segmen . These indings un eil subs an ial a ia ions
be ween sales channels ha emain obscu ed in agg ega ed analyses, p o iding empi i-
cal insigh s in o an a ea whe e he e has been a lack o e idence o his poin .
The ele ance o he long ail in consume goods sales, pa icula ly expe i-
ence goods, has been a subjec o ex ensi e discussion o e he pas wo decades.
The p e ailing idea is ha he expanded accessibili y o niche o obscu e p oduc s
h ough online e ail, in con as o he mo e limi ed s ock o adi ional b ick-and-
mo a s o es, leads o g ea e di e si y in consump ion pa e ns. While indi idual
niche p oduc s sell in small quan i ies, hei shee numbe can collec i ely accoun
o a signi ican sha e o o e all sales. Al hough he e is no unanimous de ini ion,
as discussed below, a leas in a common de ini ion acco ding o B ynjol sson e al.
(2011), he 50% leas sold p oduc s a e unde s ood as long ail. Howe e , he eco-
nomic signi icance o he long ail emains con es ed, wi h ecen indings sugges -
ing ha i s ele ance may be smalle han p e iously assumed. Fo a de ailed e iew
o he li e a u e on his opic, see Sec .2.
Fu he mo e, he e is limi ed li e a u e examining di e ences in consump ion
pa e ns be ween dis ibu ion channels ha o e he same p oduc s and, in he case
o he Ge man book ma ke , e en he same p ices due o an RPM policy.2 This a i-
cle demons a es ha he p oduc s pu chased h ough di e en dis ibu ion channels
a y signi ican ly.
Unlike ea lie s udies in his ield, ou ich da ase elimina es he need o es i-
ma ing sales igu es based on sales anks, a me hod commonly employed in wha
Liebowi z and Zen ne (2023) e e o as he ank-subs i u ion li e a u e. In hei
wo k, he au ho s show ha his me hod can esul in subs an ial o e es ima es o
1 Th oughou his pape , we delibe a ely use he e m “ op-selling books” o e e o book i les wi h he
highes sales igu es. This choice a oids po en ial con usion wi h he e m “bes selle s” o “bes selle
books”, which we unde s and o mean books ea u ed on published bes selle lis s, such as hose by
Spiegel o The New Yo k Times.
2 Since he Ge man “Book Re ail P ice Main enance Ac ” (“Buchp eisbindungsgese z”) came in o e ec
on Oc obe 1, 2002, he Ge man book ma ke has been subjec o an RPM policy, acco ding o which
publishe s mus ix he e ail p ice o a book o a leas he i s 18 mon hs a e publica ion. This law
also applies o impo ed books.
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Jou nal o Cul u al Economics (2025) 49:939–961
sales, pa icula ly o long ail p oduc s and especially o he speci ica ions used in
he ank-subs i u ion li e a u e. In con as , we analyze di ec ly obse ed sales da a.
To he bes o ou knowledge, his is he i s pape o examine he long- ail phenom-
enon using comp ehensi e da a on bo h online and o line sales.
The con ibu ion o his pape is wo old. Fi s , we p o ide e idence om
obse ed sales in he Ge man book ma ke demons a ing ha he long ail holds
ex emely low economic ele ance. Depending on he de ini ion applied, i s a e age
sha e o o e all annual sales anges be ween 0.93 and 2.45%. Agains his backd op,
we a gue ha analyzing di e ences be ween online and o line e ail equi es a ocus
on he op and middle segmen s o he sales dis ibu ion. Tha is, on p oduc s ha
a e ei he op selle s o all be ween he op selle s and he long ail. Using scanne
da a on he book ma ke in Ge many, we show ha his middle segmen ( he “mid-
dle ail”3) cons i u es a la ge sha e o o al sales in online e ail.
Second, we u ilize ou ex ensi e da a se on book sales o analyze he dis inc
composi ion o p oduc s sold ac oss di e en sales channels. Beginning wi h a high-
le el dis inc ion be ween e-comme ce and b ick-and-mo a e ail, as can be ound in
ela ed li e a u e, ou indings e eal a nega i e ela ionship be ween he ela i e age
o books sold and he concen a ion o sales in hese channels. In pa icula , books
sold ou side he op-selling segmen end o be newe in e-comme ce compa ed o
hei coun e pa s in b ick-and-mo a e ail, sugges ing a as e adop ion o new
i les online o , con e sely, a longe ma ke li e o success ul books in b ick-and-
mo a s o es. Addi ionally, we iden i y signi ican di e ences in he composi ion o
book i les by gen e: belle is ic and child en’s books a e mo e p ominen in b ick-
and-mo a e ail, while ex books accoun o a la ge sha e o sales in e-comme ce.
These indings indica e ha di e ences in sales dis ibu ions be ween channels a e
la gely d i en by a ia ions in he ypes o p oduc s demanded, i.e., di e ences in
p oduc composi ion ac oss channels.
In a subsequen analysis, we u he disagg ega e he b ick-and-mo a chan-
nel in o chain books o es and independen books o es. In he con ex o his pape ,
“chain books o es” e e speci ically o books o e chains wi h mul iple b anches ha
specialize in books and ela ed p oduc s. Independen books o es, in con as , ypi-
cally o e a mo e cu a ed selec ion o book i les, o en ailo ed o local demand,
while chain books o es usually main ain la ge s ock sizes. This dis inc ion is impo -
an because, simila o he di e ences obse ed be ween e-comme ce and b ick-
and-mo a channels, chains and independen s a e likely o se e di e en consume
g oups. Agg ega ing hese wo ypes o e ail obscu es signi ican di e ences. Spe-
ci ically, we ind ha sales in independen books o es a e less concen a ed on op-
selling books compa ed o chain s o es. Addi ionally, op-selling books in independ-
en books o es end o be mo e ecen ly published and ep esen a mo e di e se se
o au ho s. In con as , he middle segmen o sales shows he opposi e pa e n, wi h
chain s o es exhibi ing g ea e di e si y in his ca ego y.
3 To he bes o ou knowledge, he e m “middle ail” was i s in oduced by Benne and Wald ogel
(2023) o desc ibe p oduc s be ween blockbus e s and he long ail.
942
Jou nal o Cul u al Economics (2025) 49:939–961
The emainde o his pape is s uc u ed as ollows. Sec ion2 p o ides a concise
o e iew o he ele an li e a u e. Sec ion3 desc ibes he da ase and examines he
concen a ion o he sales dis ibu ion, as well as he size o he long ail. Sec ion4
p esen s he esul s o ou compa a i e analysis o he sales channels, highligh ing
di e ences in p oduc composi ion ac oss channels. Finally, Sec .5 concludes wi h a
summa y o key indings and implica ions.
2 Rela ed li e a u e
This a icle con ibu es o he li e a u e on he impac o digi iza ion on consume
ma ke s, pa icula ly he alleged inc ease in he ele ance o niche p oduc s. Ande -
son (2004, 2008) popula ized he idea ha digi al ma ke s enable niche p oduc s o
gain a la ge sha e o sales due o lowe p oduc ion and dis ibu ion cos s. B ynjol s-
son e al. (2003, 2011) u he a gued ha online e ail enhances consume su plus
h ough inc eased p oduc a ie y and exhibi s lowe sales concen a ion compa ed
o adi ional e ail channels. Mo e ecen ly, B ynjol sson e  al. (2022) p o ided
e idence ha he wel a e gains om inc eased p oduc a ie y in e-comme ce a e
app oxima ely 40 imes g ea e han hose gene a ed by p ice educ ions. Aguia and
Wald ogel (2018) a gue ha he wel a e gains om he long ail in online ma ke s,
pa icula ly in eco ded music, may be la ge han p e iously es ima ed, highligh ing
he alue o newly eleased niche p oduc s.
The economic ele ance o he long ail, howe e , emains con es ed. Ea ly c i-
iques by Elbe se and Obe holze -Gee (2007) and Elbe se (2008) demons a ed ha
indus ies such as home ideo and music emain hea ily concen a ed on bes sell-
e s, limi ing he long ail’s economic ele ance. Simila ly, Tan e al. (2017) ound
ha he demand-di e si ying e ec s o addi ional p oduc a ie y disp opo iona ely
bene i op selle s, u he diminishing he long ail’s economic ele ance. Mo e
ecen ly, Liebowi z and Zen ne (2023) c i iqued me hodologies suppo ing he long
ail. In pa icula , he au ho s demons a e ha ank-based es ima ion me hods, com-
monly used in ea lie s udies (e.g., B ynjol sson e al., 2003; Che alie & Goolsbee,
2003) o e es ima e sales in he long ail.
This pape also ela es o he li e a u e examining whe he he long ail e ec di -
e s be ween online han in o line sales channels. Simila o ou own esul s, Pel-
ie and Mo eau (2012) and Pel ie e  al. (2016) show ha sales concen a ion in
he F ench book ma ke is lowe online han o line, and ha his gap widened o e
ime, sugges ing a g owing ele ance o niche i les in e-comme ce.
Beyond he long ail deba e, limi ed li e a u e add esses di e ences in consump-
ion ac oss sales channels. Quan and Williams (2018) a gue ha b ick-and-mo a
s o es, by ailo ing hei p oduc asso men s o local demand and as es, diminish
he wel a e bene i s o he addi ional p oduc a ie y o e ed by online e ail, high-
ligh ing a complemen a y ela ionship be ween channels. Simila ly, Na a e e and
Bo owiecki (2016) documen di e ences in consume p e e ences be ween onsi e
and online museum isi s, emphasizing dis inc consump ion pa e ns ac oss chan-
nels. Building on hese s udies, ou pape examines how di e ences in p oduc

943
Jou nal o Cul u al Economics (2025) 49:939–961
composi ion ac oss e ail channels—e-comme ce, chain books o es, and independ-
en books o es— ela e o consume beha io in he book ma ke .
The subs i u abili y o sales channels has ecei ed g owing a en ion. S udies sug-
ges ha e-comme ce and b ick-and-mo a s o es a e impe ec subs i u es, wi h
o line s o e closu es leading o shi s in demand owa d less popula i les (Liebow-
i z e al., 2021) and declines in o e all book demand (Gö z e al., 2025). Subs i u ion
pa e ns also a y by p oduc ype, wi h g ea e compe i ion o mains eam goods
han o niche p oduc s (B ynjol sson e  al., 2009). Fu he mo e, subs i u ion is
in luenced by p oximi y, as consume s a e mo e likely o choose o line s o es when
hey a e nea by (Fo man e al., 2009). Wang and Gold a b (2017) u he showed
ha new s o e openings educe online sales in egions wi h s ong b and p esence
bu inc ease hem in weake ones, sugges ing ha online and o line channels ac
as complemen s in ma ke ing while hey may be subs i u es in dis ibu ion. In an
analysis o he F ench eco ded music ma ke , I aldi e al. (2024) ind e idence o a
subs i u ion e ec be ween digi al downloads and physical sales, a leas a he a is
le el. Finally, Che alie and Goolsbee (2003) demons a e g ea e p ice elas ici y in
b ick-and-mo a e ail han in e-comme ce, unde sco ing key beha io al di e ences
ac oss channels.
This pape also con ibu es o he li e a u e on consume beha io in omnichannel
en i onmen s, pa icula ly ega ding sales channel choice. While ex ensi e esea ch
has examined he de e minan s o channel choice, ypically emphasizing chan-
nel cha ac e is ics such as con enience, p ice, o se ice quali y (e.g., Neslin e al.,
2006; Chin agun a e al., 2012), s udies explo ing how p oduc cha ac e is ics di e
ac oss channels emain limi ed and only ecen ly eme ging (Ra ch o d e al., 2023).
Finally, his pape ela es o he wo k o Benne and Wald ogel (2023) on he
g owing impo ance o “middle ail s a egies”, whe e p oduce s ocus on c ea ing
no el p oduc s ailo ed o he p e e ences o he e ogeneous audiences.
3 Concen a ion o  hesales dis ibu ion
Ou analysis is based on a comp ehensi e da ase o scanne da a, i.e. de ailed ans-
ac ion da a om e ail cash egis e s, om he Ge man book ma ke . The da ase
dis inguishes sales ac oss a ious e ail channels, including e-comme ce and b ick-
and-mo a books o es, wi h he la e u he di ided in o independen books o es
(hence o h: independen s) and books o e chains wi h mul iple b anches (hence-
o h: chains). In addi ion, he da a include book sales om smalle e ail channels
such as g oce y s o es, depa men s o es, and elec onics o d ugs o es. The da a se
was acqui ed om he Ge man comme cial ma ke esea ch company media con ol
GmbH.
O e all, his da ase co e s 87.2% o all books sold h ough o line channels and
78.5% o hose sold h ough online channels du ing he analyzed pe iod.4 Among
b ick-and-mo a channels, we ocus on independen s and chains, as hese specialize
4 Co e age da a was p o ided by he da a p o ide .
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Jou nal o Cul u al Economics (2025) 49:939–961
in books as hei p ima y p oduc ca ego y, ensu ing compa abili y ac oss chan-
nels. Fu he mo e, e-comme ce, independen s, and chains collec i ely accoun o
a median o 97.32% o o al book sales obse ed in ou da ase du ing he analyzed
pe iod (mean: 97.27%), making hem he mos ele an segmen s o he ma ke .
Fo each e ail channel, we obse e he op 50,000 book i les gene a ing he
highes e enues o each week om 2011 o 2018. The da ase includes each
book’s ISBN,5 a e age p ice, quan i y sold, and a ious book a ibu es, mos no a-
bly elease da e, au ho (s) and gen e. The gen e a ibu e is ep esen ed by a h ee-
digi iden i ie known as “Wa eng uppe”. Publishe s assign each i le o one single
Wa eng uppe based on i s p ima y pu pose o main use. Fo ou classi ica ions by
gen e, we ely on he highes le el o agg ega ion o his hie a chical iden i ie which
ep esen s he o e a ching “main g oup”, such as Belle is ic, Child en’s Books, o
Non-Fic ion.6
Addi ionally, his da a is supplemen ed by his o ical bes selle lis s o each gen e
published by he Ge man SPIEGEL magazine. In o al, ou analyses ely on app oxi-
ma ely 55.1 million da a poin s, wi h each da a poin ep esen ing weekly sales a
he ISBN and sales channel le el. This comp ises da a on a ound 400,000 unique
ISBNs pe yea and sligh ly o e one million unique ISBNs o e he en i e pe iod.
Using his da ase , we agg ega e he dis ibu ion o sales by each e ail channel o
each yea in he obse ed pe iod, which se es as he ounda ion o he analyses
p esen ed in his pape . A mo e comp ehensi e desc ip ion o he da a used o his
s udy can be ound in AppendixA.
Fig. 1 Lo enz cu es o yea ly book sales, sepa a ed by e ail channel. Full sales dis ibu ion (le ) and
limi ed o he 50% mos sold book i les ( igh )
5 The In e na ional S anda d Book Numbe (ISBN) is an in e na ionally used unique iden i ie o books.
6 This classi ica ion sys em is widely used by indus y p o essionals in he Ge man book ma ke . I is
main ained by key s akeholde s, including he Bö sen e ein des Deu schen Buchhandels ( he Ge man
Publishe s and Bookelle s Associa ion), wholesale s (Ba so imen e), and e aile s. Fu he in o ma ion
on he Wa eng uppe classi ica ion sys em, including de ails abou he main g oups, is a ailable (in Ge -
man) on he websi e o he Bö sen e ein des Deu schen Buchhandels: h ps:// www. boe s en e ein. de/
ma k - da en/ ma k o sc hung/ wi s cha szahl en/ wa en g upp en.
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Jou nal o Cul u al Economics (2025) 49:939–961
Book i le consump ion exhibi s a no able deg ee o concen a ion, as illus a ed
by he Lo enz cu es in Fig.1. These cu es highligh he dispa i y in he dis ibu-
ion o book sales wi hin ou da a and p o ide wo key insigh s ha unde pin he
cen al a gumen s o his pape . Fi s , all sales channels exhibi a high deg ee o
concen a ion in hei sales dis ibu ions. Second, he Lo enz cu es seemingly sub-
s an ia e, a leas quali a i ely, he commonly asse ed no ion o a less p onounced
concen a ion wi hin e-comme ce compa ed o b ick-and-mo a e ail. This di e -
ence is mo e p onounced be ween e-comme ce and chain s o es. Howe e , hese
di e ences in sales dis ibu ions a e ela i ely small. The emainde o his sec ion
explo es sales concen a ion in mo e de ail, while Sec .4 examines how i a ies
ac oss channels and po en ial d i e s o hese di e ences.
To assess he size o he long ail in ou da ase , we i s examine he p opo -
ion o o al obse ed sales ac oss all sales channels a ibu ed o books wi hin each
decile o he sales dis ibu ion. The esul s a e shown in Table 1. Acco ding o a
con en ional de ini ion o he long ail in oduced by B ynjol sson e  al. (2011),
i includes he bo om 50% o p oduc s anked by agg ega ed sales. As shown in
Table 1, i les wi hin he long ail unde his de ini ion accoun , on a e age, o
app oxima ely 1.63% o he o al quan i y o books sold each yea . Following an
al e na i e, mo e na ow de ini ion o he long ail discussed in ela ed li e a u e,
which delimi s he long ail as he bo om 40% o sold p oduc s, his a e age sha e
diminishes o below 1% (mo e p ecisely, 0.93%). This s a k educ ion unde sco es
he sensi i i y o long ail me ics o de ini ional nuances. Mo e impo an ly, bo h
igu es emphasize he negligible economic ele ance o he long ail in book con-
sump ion, signaling ha he as majo i y o sales a e concen a ed wi hin he op
segmen s o he dis ibu ion.
These obse ed sales sha es in ou da ase a e conside ably lowe han hose
epo ed in ea lie s udies. No ably, hey con as wi h indings om he ank-sub-
s i u ion li e a u e, such as B ynjol sson e al. (2011), who epo sha es o 12.7%
and 15.2% o he bo om 50% o p oduc s in ca alog and online sales, espec i ely.
Ins ead, ou obse a ions align mo e wi h hose o Liebowi z e  al. (2021), who
analyze he US book ma ke and ind cumula i e sales o app oxima ely 2–4% o
he 75–90 h pe cen iles o leas sold books. This sugges s ha he US book ma ke
exhibi s an e en highe concen a ion han he Ge man ma ke : Acco ding o ou
da a, he bo om 80% o books accoun o 10,2% o o al sales (see Table1).
Table 1 Sha e o o al book
sales accoun ed by each decile
o books
The alues ep esen he mean sha e (wi h s anda d de ia ion in
pa en hesis) o each decile ac oss he obse a ion pe iod (2011–
2018), based on yea ly da a
Decile Sha e in sales (in %) Decile Sha e in sales (in %)
1 77.78 (3.84) 6 0.70 (0.13)
2 12.07 (1.74) 7 0.42 (0.07)
3 4.92 (1.11) 8 0.26 (0.04)
4 2.36 (0.60) 9 0.17 (0.04)
5 1.24 (0.29) 10 0.08 (0.02)
946
Jou nal o Cul u al Economics (2025) 49:939–961
An al e na i e de ini ion o he long ail conside s i in absolu e e ms, encom-
passing all p oduc s anked beyond he 100,000 h posi ion. This measu e was i s
p oposed by B ynjol sson e  al. (2003), who a gued ha i co esponds app oxi-
ma ely o he s ock size o a la ge U.S. books o e (“supe s o e"). Applied o ou da a
on he Ge man book ma ke , his absolu e de ini ion esul s in a sligh ly la ge sha e
o o al sales compa ed o he p e iously discussed ela i e de ini ions (e.g., he bo -
om 50% o leas -sold books). Speci ically, ou da a show ha i les anked beyond
he 100,000 mos sold accoun o an a e age o 2.45% o o al annual sales, wi h a
median sha e o 2.73%.
P e ious esea ch has no ed ha s udies iden i ying he impo ance o g ow h o
he long ail o en ely on absolu e de ini ions, whe eas s udies eaching he opposi e
conclusion ypically use ela i e de ini ions (B ynjol sson e al., 2010). Based on he
sales sha es obse ed in ou da ase on he Ge man book ma ke , we ind ha he
long ail is ex emely small, ega dless o whe he an absolu e o ela i e de ini ion
is applied.
A simila conclusion eme ges when analyzing Gini coe icien s. Applied o he
con ex o sales da a, he Gini coe icien indica es he deg ee o concen a ion o
sales on a scale om 0 (pe ec ly e en dis ibu ion) o 1 (pe ec inequali y o high-
es le el o concen a ion possible). B ynjol sson e  al. (2011) epo Gini coe i-
cien s o 0.49 and 0.53 o online and ca alog e ail channels, espec i ely. Sligh ly
highe alues a e obse ed by Hinz e al. (2011) in he online ideo-on-demand ma -
ke , wi h coe icien s anging om 55.3 o 73.2 (mean alue: 63.7). In con as , ou
da a e eal Gini coe icien s (yea ly mean) o 0.87 and 0.89 o online and com-
bined o line channels. Wi hin he o line ca ego y, chains and independen s exhibi
Gini coe icien s o 0.89 and 0.88, espec i ely. These indings sugges much la ge
deg ees o concen a ion o sales han p oposed in ea lie s udies and align wi h
hose o Tan e al. (2017), who epo Gini coe icien s be ween 0.82 and 0.86 in
hei analysis o physical ideo en als.
Ou indings align wi h ecen li e a u e on he long ail in digi ized ma ke s. In
pa icula , Liebowi z e al. (2021) and Liebowi z and Zen ne (2023) a gue ha ea -
lie s udies unde es ima e he concen a ion o sales in he book ma ke and o e es i-
ma e he ele ance o he long ail. Like ou s udy, bo h pape s ely on scanne da a;
howe e , while we analyze da a om he Ge man book ma ke , Liebowi z e  al.
(2021) and Liebowi z and Zen ne (2023) ocus on he U.S. book ma ke . Ou ind-
ings con i m ha he ela ionship be ween long- ank and log-sales is conca e, sup-
po ing c i iques o he ank-subs i u ion me hod and ein o cing e idence ha sales
wi hin he long ail a e ex emely low and ha e been o e es ima ed in p io esea ch.
As shown in he Lo enz cu es in Fig.1, di e ences in concen a ion be ween
sales channels a e ela i ely sub le. Figu e 2 illus a es ha hese di e ences
dec ease along he sales dis ibu ion. Fo he i s decile, he di e ence in he
median sha e o sales be ween he mos concen a ed channel (chains) and he leas
concen a ed channel (e-comme ce) is 8.71 pe cen age poin s. Howe e , his di e -
ence diminishes o less han one pe cen age poin o deciles i e and abo e, wi h
di e ences in sales sha es in he lowe hal o he dis ibu ion (i.e., he long ail)
being negligible. Addi ionally, Fig.2 e eals a change in he sign o hese di e -
ences be ween he op 10% (i.e., he mos sold i les) and he 11 h–50 h pe cen iles
953
Jou nal o Cul u al Economics (2025) 49:939–961
e iden in gen e dis ibu ions, we p esen a mo e de ailed gen e-speci ic analysis.
Figu e5 illus a es he esul s o gen es showing he mos p onounced di e ences
ela i e ele ance ac oss sales channels: belle is ic, child en’s books, and ex books.
The esul s o all o he gen es a e p o ided in Appendix 10.
Analyzing Fig.5, i becomes appa en ha di e ences be ween sales channels a e
gene ally smalle in his gen e-speci ic analysis. Fi s , wi hin he belle is ic gen e
( i s column in Fig.5), di e ences in he numbe o au ho s be ween channels a e
no longe signi ican (panel a). Simila esul s a e obse ed o di e ences in he
age o op-selling books in his gen e (panel d). Howe e , di e ences in age pe sis
ac oss he middle segmen s, as discussed in he p e ious analysis o all gen es com-
bined: middle ail books sold h ough e-comme ce a e younge by up o one yea .
Con e sely, di e ences in he sha e o p e ious bes selle s among op-selling i les
(panel g) show he opposi e pa e n compa ed o he analysis ac oss all gen es. In
his subse o belle is ic books, he sha e o p e ious bes selle s among op-selling
i les is signi ican ly highe in e-comme ce.
Second, conside ing child en’s books (second column in Fig.5), di e ences in
he numbe o au ho s a e no longe signi ican (panel b). Di e ences in mean age
(panel e) and he sha e o p e ious bes selle s (panel h) gene ally mi o he pa e ns
obse ed in he p e ious analysis ac oss all gen es combined.
Thi d, signi ican di e ences in he numbe o au ho s a e obse ed o ex books
( hi d column in Fig.5, panels c)), pa icula ly no able in he op-selling pe cen iles.
No ably, ex books in b ick-and-mo a e ail a e au ho ed by a la ge g oup com-
pa ed o hose in e-comme ce, a dis inc ion no ully cap u ed in he p e ious analy-
sis ac oss all gen es. Fo o he measu es, no signi ican di e ences a e obse ed.
O e all, hese indings suppo he ea lie hypo hesis, indica ing ha di e ences in
sales dis ibu ion and p oduc cha ac e is ics such as au ho coun , age since publi-
ca ion, o he p e alence o es ablished bes selle s a e la gely d i en by gen e com-
posi ion wi hin each e ail channel.
Fig. 6 Sales sha es wi hin segmen s o ela i e sales anks ac oss sales channels o h ee sales channels:
e-comme ce, chain s o es and independen s o es. Based on yea ly sales, speci ically, each da a poin ep-
esen s
𝜎
c
,s
o yea ly sales da a as de ined in Eq.1

954
Jou nal o Cul u al Economics (2025) 49:939–961
4.2 Compa ison o e‑Comme ce, chain s o es andindependen s o es
Expanding on he p e ious sec ion, we now dis inguish be ween chain and inde-
penden books o es o o e a mo e nuanced iew o sales wi hin b ick-and-mo a
e ail. Figu e6 illus a es sales sha es ac oss deciles o he sales dis ibu ion. The
p esen a ion me hod mi o s ha used in he p e ious subsec ion, pa icula ly in
Fig.3. Speci ically, i shows he sha e o sales wi hin each channel a ibu able o
pe cen ile in e als, compa ed wi h he sha e o sales ac oss all channels o he
same pe cen iles. As obse ed in Fig.3 om he p e ious sec ion, Fig.6 indica es
ha online e ail is less concen a ed on he op-selling books ( i s decile) com-
pa ed o b ick-and-mo a e ail. Wi hin his de ailed analysis o b ick-and-mo a
e ail, chain s o es no ably exhibi a highe concen a ion on he op-selling books
Fig. 7 Di e ences in books’ cha ac e is ics be ween sales channels and ac oss he sales dis ibu ion. The
solid lines show he i o a hi d deg ee polynomial linea eg ession model wi h 99% con idence in e -
als ep esen ed by he shaded a eas. Each da a poin ep esen s one obse a ion pe yea and pe cen ile
o he sales dis ibu ion
955
Jou nal o Cul u al Economics (2025) 49:939–961
compa ed o independen books o es. O e all, di e ences in sales be ween online
and o line e ail a e p ima ily in luenced by a ia ions be ween chain s o es and
e-comme ce, wi h chain s o es showing a s onge concen a ion on op-selling i les
in b ick-and-mo a e ail.
While i was p e iously es ablished ha e-comme ce gene ally ea u es a highe
a e age numbe o au ho s ac oss all ele an segmen s compa ed o b ick-and-
mo a e ail, a mo e de ailed analysis e eals nuances. Speci ically, panel a) in
Fig.7 shows no signi ican di e ence in he numbe o au ho s o op-selling books
be ween e-comme ce and independen s o es. Howe e , beyond he op decile, inde-
penden s o es exhibi a apid decline in au ho di e si y, anging om app oxi-
ma ely 5p.p. o -7p.p. ac oss middle segmen s. In con as , chain s o es consis en ly
ea u e a na owe ange o au ho s compa ed o bo h e-comme ce and independen
s o es, wi h di e ences o up o 15p.p. As discussed ea lie , unde s anding hese
a ia ions equi es conside a ion o di e ences in gen e composi ion. Ne e he-
less, i is e iden ha bo h e-comme ce and independen s o es o e a mo e di e se
selec ion o au ho s wi hin he op-selling books segmen , which ep esen s oughly
h ee-qua e s o all sales (see Table 1). Addi ionally, panel a) unde sco es ha
e-comme ce main ains highe au ho di e si y ac oss he en i e sales dis ibu ion,
whe eas independen s o es show signi ican ly ewe au ho s in he middle segmen .
Rega ding he a e age age o books (panel b), no able di e ences be ween he
wo b ick-and-mo a channels a e e iden . Signi ican age di e ences a e obse ed
h oughou he sales dis ibu ion: Books in he middle segmen s o independ-
en s o es a e app oxima ely hal a yea olde on a e age, whe eas books in chain
s o es a e younge by up o 100 days ac oss all segmen s. Simila ly, he analysis
o gen e composi ion e eals signi ican di e ences wi hin b ick-and-mo a chan-
nels. Chains exhibi an abo e-a e age p esence (app oxima ely 6 p.p.) o belle is-
ic books in he op-selling segmen (panel c) compa ed o independen books o es.
Con e sely, panel d) shows ha child en’s books hold a highe sha e (app oxima ely
5p.p.) in independen books o es, while hei p esence in chain s o es is no signi i-
can ly di e en om he o e all a e age ac oss all channels. Las ly, panel ) high-
ligh s di e ences in he concen a ion o ex books: Tex books ha e a la ge sha e
(app oxima ely 10p.p.) in he op-selling segmen o independen books o es com-
pa ed o chain s o es, bu his end e e ses in he middle segmen s.
Panel h) displays he p opo ion o o me bes selle s in o al sales. Di e ences
be ween he channels a e e iden only o he op-selling books, consis en wi h he
compa ison in he p e ious subsec ion. Speci ically, bes selle s cons i u e a no ably
highe sha e in chain s o es (app oxima ely 2 p.p.) compa ed o he a e age. Con-
e sely, in independen s o es, he sha e is signi ican ly below a e age o a simila
ex en .
O e all, his analysis highligh s wo main poin s: Fi s , a comp ehensi e iew o
he en i e b ick-and-mo a e ail sec o is insu icien o unde s anding he di e -
ences be ween dis ibu ion channels. I is e iden ha he dispa i ies be ween chain
s o es and independen s o es a e subs an ial and signi ican . No able di e ences
be ween channels a e p onounced in bo h he op-selling books and he middle seg-
men s, whe eas di e ences in he leas sold books (i.e., he long ail o he sales
dis ibu ion) a e ela i ely mino and mos ly insigni ican .
956
Jou nal o Cul u al Economics (2025) 49:939–961
Second, hese a ia ions in sales concen a ion (discussed in Sec .4) a e closely
ied o di e ences in he composi ion o he books sold: (i) Chain s o es sell a highe
p opo ion o p e ious bes selle s and belle is ic i les, wi h ewe ex books and
lowe au ho di e si y. (ii) Independen books o es, on he o he hand, sell a below-
a e age numbe o p e ious bes selle s and show a concen a ion on child en’s
books, wi h guide & a el books being unde ep esen ed in he op-selling seg-
men . In he middle segmen , he e is an abo e-a e age p esence o belle is ic and a
below-a e age p esence o ex books. (iii) E-comme ce main ains consis en cha ac-
e is ics ac oss he sales dis ibu ion, wi h a no ably highe numbe o au ho s ep e-
sen ed, and a endency o belle is ic and child en’s books o be unde ep esen ed,
and ex books o be o e ep esen ed.
Figu e8, p esen s selec ed cha ac e is ics o gen es whe e dis ibu ion channels
exhibi signi ican di e ences. Resul s o all o he gen es a e p o ided in Appen-
dix 11. I illus a es ha di e ences in book cha ac e is ics be ween dis ibu ion
channels become less p onounced and, in some cases, no longe signi ican , once
gen e is con olled o . This is pa icula ly no able o he numbe o au ho s ( i s
ow in Fig.8). Speci ically, only in he case o ex books (panel c) does e-comme ce
main ain a signi ican ly lowe numbe o au ho s compa ed o he a e age ac oss all
channels o he op-selling i les. Mo eo e , ex books in he independen books o e
channel show abo e-a e age au ho di e si y, sugges ing g ea e p oduc di e si y
wi hin his gen e.
Rega ding he age s uc u e o sold books (second ow in Fig.8), no able di e -
ences be ween channels p ima ily a ise be ween e-comme ce and independen book-
s o es: books sold h ough independen s o es, pa icula ly in he middle segmen ,
ha e a signi ican ly highe a e age age, whe eas books sold h ough e-comme ce
end o be younge . A simila pa e n eme ges in he hi d ow o Fig.8 depic ing he
sha e o p e ious bes selle s in o al sales. He e, he di e ence be ween online and
Fig. 8 Di e ences in books’ cha ac e is ics o di e en gen e-subse s. The solid line shows he i o a
3 d deg ee polynomial linea eg ession mode wi h 99% con idence in e als ep esen ed by he shaded
a eas. Each da a poin ep esen s one obse a ion pe yea and pe cen ile o he sales dis ibu ion
957
Jou nal o Cul u al Economics (2025) 49:939–961
o e all b ick-and-mo a e ail is d i en by dis inc ions be ween independen s o es
and e-comme ce: o me bes selle s cons i u e a no ably highe sha e in e-comme ce
compa ed o independen books o es.
To conclude, hese insigh s align wi h he unde s anding ha di e ences be ween
dis ibu ion channels a e la gely in luenced by gen e composi ion. Di e ences in he
composi ion o pu chased book i les be ween sales channels, in u n, align wi h he
indings o Quan and Williams (2018), who in hei analysis o a clo hing ma ke , also
ind e idence o adjus men s in he asso men based on ac oss-ma ke demand he -
e ogenei y. Fu he mo e, hese esul s a e consis en wi h he indings o Na a e e
and Bo owiecki (2016), who highligh ed di e ences in p e e ences be ween dis ibu-
ion channels. A he same ime, howe e , i has been ou lined ha some dis inc ions
pe sis wi hin gen es ac oss channels. Fo example, gen e-speci ic analyses e eal ha
e-comme ce pu chases signi ican ly mo e es ablished bes selle s in he op-selling book
ca ego y. This inding is consis en wi h ela ed esea ch on he book ma ke , sugges -
ing ha e-comme ce sales inc ease a e he appea ance o a book on a bes selle lis ,
con as ing wi h ends obse ed in b ick-and-mo a e ail (Gö z e al., 2020).
5 Conclusions
The analyses p esen ed in his pape con ibu es o he ongoing discou se on he
impac s o digi iza ion on consume goods ma ke s. This wo k makes wo main con-
ibu ions: Fi s , we p o ide e idence sugges ing limi ed economic ele ance o he
long ail phenomenon. Addi ionally, ou indings do no suppo signi ican a ia-
ions be ween sales channels in e ms o he impo ance o he long ail. Ins ead, sig-
ni ican di e ences a e obse ed be ween channels in he sales o op-selling i les
and he middle segmen s o he sales dis ibu ion.
Second, we p o ide a nuanced unde s anding o he di e ences in sales composi ion
ac oss e ail channels. Le e aging ou comp ehensi e scanne da a, we es ablish ha
hese a ia ions in he sales dis ibu ion a e ela ed o di e ences in book cha ac e is-
ics sold h ough each channel and wi hin speci ic segmen s o he sales dis ibu ion.
Speci ically, ou analysis e eals ha books in he middle segmen , mo e p ominen in
online e ail, end o be younge compa ed o hose in b ick-and-mo a channels. This
challenges he no ion ha online e ail me ely se es as a eposi o y o olde i les no
longe a ailable in physical s o es, sugges ing ins ead ha segmen s s onge in online
e ail ea u e younge books. O e all, ou indings unde sco e ha hese di e ences
be ween dis ibu ion channels p ima ily a ise om a ia ions in gen e composi ion.
Beyond, we p esen a mo e de ailed analysis in which we dis inguish no only
be ween e-comme ce and b ick-and-mo a e ail bu also be ween chain s o es and
independen books o es wi hin he b ick-and-mo a channel. This analysis un eils
signi ican di e ences in sales composi ion be ween chain s o es and independen
books o es, which a e obscu ed when agg ega ing hem in o b ick-and-mo a e ail
as a whole. The disce nible di e ences indica e ha book consump ion pa e ns in
independen books o es a e mo e di e se compa ed o chain s o es. Speci ically, we
obse e ha he p opo ion o es ablished bes selle s in o al sales is lowe in inde-
penden s o es han in o he sales channels.
958
Jou nal o Cul u al Economics (2025) 49:939–961
This pape add esses a gap in he exis ing li e a u e by highligh ing subs an ial
di e ences in he p oduc composi ions sold h ough a ious e ail channels. Ou
indings sugges dis inc consume p e e ences ac oss hese channels. Speci ically,
we iden i y signi ican dispa i ies in gen e composi ions be ween channels, indica -
ing ha di e en consume segmen s a e se ed by each channel. This implies ha
e-comme ce and b ick-and-mo a e ail, as well as chain s o es and independen
s o es, a e no pe ec subs i u es. Ou a gumen is suppo ed by ecen ad ances in
he li e a u e ha emphasize limi ed subs i u abili y be ween sales channels and he
p esence o channel-speci ic consume p e e ences.
Appendix
A Da a
Fo ou analyses, we combine wo da a sou ces. Fi s , we use a comme cially a ail-
able da a se on book sales in Ge many. This is scanne da a, i.e. ansac ion da a
on u no e , sales and he ype o i ems sold, which is eco ded a he checkou s o
e ail s o es. The ansac ion da a is a ailable a ISBN le el and includes he 50,000
op-selling book i les in each week o he obse a ion pe iod and o each ype o
e ail s o y (hence o h: sales channel). In addi ion, he da a se includes in o ma ion
on publica ion da e, au ho (s) and gen e. An o e iew o he cha ac e is ics o his
scanne da a can be seen in Table2.
Second, we supplemen his scanne da a wi h weekly da a on bes selle lis s in
he same pe iod. Fo his pu pose, we use he gen e-speci ic bes selle lis s o he
Ge man SPIEGEL magazine. These bes selle lis s show which book i le (iden i ied
by ISBN) was in which posi ion on he bes selle lis in he co esponding week.
Table 2 Cha ac e is ics o he scanne da a o he Ge man book ma ke , on which his pape ’s analyses
a e based
Da a cha ac e is ic Desc ip ion
Da a p o ide Media con ol GmbH
Da a collec ion me hod S o e da a (POS)
Measu emen s Re enue, quan i y sold
Co e age 2011–2018
F equency Weekly
Sales channels Independen book s o es, chain book s o es
e-comme ce
Gen es Belle is ic, child en’s books, a el and guide
Books, ex books, non- ic ion
O he obse ed ea u es ISBN, publishing da e, au ho (s)

959
Jou nal o Cul u al Economics (2025) 49:939–961
B Supplemen a y Figu es
See Figs.9, 10 and 11.
Fig. 9 Log- ans o med sum o sales sha es o book i les wi hin he espec i e decile o sales anks
ac oss ime. Sepa a ed by sales channel. An inc ease in size o he las deciles (i.e., he long ail), is no
appa en
Fig. 10 Di e ence in books’ a ibu es o di e en gen e-subse s o e-comme ce and b ick-and-mo a
e ail o e all. The solid lines show he i o a 3 d deg ee polynomial linea eg ession model wi h 99%
con idence in e als ep esen ed by he shaded a eas. Each da a poin ep esen s one obse a ion pe yea
and pe cen ile o he sales dis ibu ion
960
Jou nal o Cul u al Economics (2025) 49:939–961
Acknowledgemen s I am g a e ul o Maximilian Gail, Geo g Gö z, Daniel He old, Jan Schä e , and
An onello Eugenio Sco cu o hei aluable suppo and insigh ul discussions h oughou he de elop-
men o his pape . I also hank he pa icipan s o he RGS and EWACE con e ences in 2024 o hei
help ul commen s and sugges ions.
Funding Open Access unding enabled and o ganized by P ojek DEAL.
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Publishe ’s No e Sp inge Na u e emains neu al wi h ega d o ju isdic ional claims in published maps
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