The cassette format became the basis of the videotape revolution in the 1970's. Sony introduced the 3/4-inch U-matic VCR in the U.S. in 1971, and for the first time, allowed other manufacturers to sell machines that could play the cassette, and thus succeeded in establishing a world standard for the 3/4-inch videocassette. In 1975 Sony introduced in the U.S. the Betamax consumer VCR console for $2295 with one-hour 1/2-inch tape cassettes for $15.95. Sony sought to create a standardized format, as it had done with the U-matic, by getting other companies to produce machines that would play the Beta cassettes, but refused to license the cassettes themselves. The next year JVC introduced the VHS format and a VCR for only $885 and licensed the technology to other companies. Sony would lose the "Betamax War" with VHS, but it would triumph with the Walkman portable audio cassette player in 1979. The TPS-L2 inaugurated a new era of personal music listening. The Sony family of portable personal music players would grow to include over 500 models, from the original pocket-sized 14-oz Walkman to the D-88 Pocket DiscMan of 1988 to the DAT Walkman TCD-D3 of 1991 to the MiniDisc of 1992 to the digital Discman of 1999. According to Sony, in the 20-year history of the Walkman devices, 100 million units were sold in the U.S. creating a $1 billion industry.
Sony Walkman at 20
