Lou Ottens, the Dutch inventor of the cassette tape, the medium of choice for millions of bedroom mix tapes, has died, said Philips, the company where he also helped develop the compact disc. Mr Ottens died on Saturday at age 94, Philips confirmed. Its popularity waned with the development of the compact disc, an invention Mr Ottens also helped create as supervisor of a development team, Philips said. The cassette tape’s success stemmed from its simplicity, Mr Ottens said in an interview published by the Philips Museum. “Everybody could put music in their pocket,” Mr Ottens said.

Source: Irish Independent March 12, 2021 11:06 UTC