Wired 2/98: Hype List

Deflating this month's overblown memes.

By Steve G. Steinberg

MiniDisc

Ranking: 3
Life Expectancy: 1 month
On the Rise/Decline: Decline

If you fail once, remarket and ... fail again. That seems to be Sony's strategy with its beloved MiniDisc, anyway. Having accepted that the audio format won't replace the CD, Sony is now marketing MiniDisc as a cheap, recordable alternative to the cassette tape. This is not just a sign of diminished expectations - it's serious ignorance. The real cassette tape and CD killer is already out there. Just ask the thousands of college-age music pirates who daily download MP3-compressed tunes form the Net for free.

[email protected]

[MD meme on the decline with one month until fadeout!? Steve, do try and avoid that American penchant for provincialism. -eaw]


Return to the MiniDisc Community Page.