Many would argue that the efflorescence of new publishing that Amazon has encouraged can only be a good thing, that it enriches cultural diversity and expands choice. But that picture is not so clear: a number of studies have shown that when people are offered a narrower range of options, their selections are likely to be more diverse than if they are presented with a number of choices so vast as to be overwhelming. In this situation people often respond by retreating into the security of what they already know.
As Barry Schwartz, author of The Paradox of Choice, explains, "When the choice set is larger, people tend to make worse choices. They choose on the basis of what's easiest to evaluate, rather than what's important to evaluate...the safe, highly marketed option usually comes out on top."
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Amazon as gatekeeper
The quiet, subtle ways that Amazon limits choices....(Nation)
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2 comments:
I think it is silly to limit this sort of argument to Amazon. You could also, for instance, compare Apple to the entire PC market. Despite lots of good PCs in the world, lots of people buy Apple products precisely because they have a safe, highly-marketed product line.
Like it or not, this is where we've found ourselves in the information age. The companies who can simplify a decision-making process and essentially provide what seem like compelling filters are going to win hearts and minds. Amazon does that using low prices, an extremely active review system, and subtle manipulation of what you see when you go to the site.
Netflix sets itself apart as a service using its recommendation engine, among other things. Their newest online interface shows me "movies similar to X" for the last 5 or so I've watched, in addition to a general recommendations list. They also encourage me to rate the movies I've watched to help others.
Apple creates products that pundits slam time and time again for having fewer features than the competitors, but they provide such a compelling and safe experience that no one can actually compete with them.
I used to prefer going to a store and talking with people to find good recommendations, but software and crowd-sourcing has simply transcended the need to do that anymore. I don't have to make a judgment about whether to trust the guy in the blue shirt when there is so much data available online. What value is the store providing me at this point, other than an opportunity to pay sales tax?
As to whether variety is lost, I think that largely depends on what value you ascribe to what is being lost. In the PC market, I don't think people like to take risks, which is why the top brands (Apple, HP) have always been the top brands. As soon as Dell started to make crap, they fell out of the top 3 like a rock.
For movies, I can say that Netflix has introduced me to a lot more variety than I would otherwise have experienced, thanks to their recommendation engine.
For books, I've purchased at least 2 (actual hardcovers!) from Amazon in the past couple of months that I heard about online, but not from Amazon. They were related, but I wasn't suggested them by Amazon, I found out about them on my own. Does Amazon's recommendation engine need work? Probably. The second book should have been recommended to me. But I found out about it anyway, so I'm not sure you could argue that amazon is limiting my choices.
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