Sony pulls plug on its Walkman in Japan

BANGALORE, INDIA: Long back, before we could even imagine about MP3 players, iPads, iPods and smartphones, Walkman was the most luxurious thing that one could imagine when it comes to listening to music in privacy. Now you may find it difficult to see that small box which brought music to your private world. As digital technology is replacing the very concept of cassette tape, Sony has finally decided to stop the production of its Walkman.

Sony stopped Japanese production of the portable music player in April and sales will end once the last batch disappears from stores, a media report quoted company spokeswoman Hiroko Nakamura as saying.

According to an Associated Press report, Sony has sold 220 million cassette Walkman players globally since the product's July 1979 debut that changed lifestyles by popularizing music on the go. But Sony will continue production of the cassette Walkman in China to accommodate users abroad, including in the U.S., Europe and some Asian countries, it said. Still the question remains... for how long?

The last new tape Walkman model came out in 2008 and a new one can be bought for about 4,000 yen ($49) in Japan.

And this demise is not unexpected though. If cassettes can end the era of old discs and record players, digital technology can replace cassettes too! And digital technology is not the end of history. As long as human race and music are there, this evolution will also keep on happening. And tomorrow's generations will hear folklores about the revolutions called mp3 players, iPads, iPods... you name it!