Cherished by a generation of joggers, school children and music fans since its launch in 1979, the Walkman evolutionised the way people listened to music but has since been overtaken by another icon of the modern era — the iPod.
“The music-listening style of our customers has shifted so much to digital audio,” Sony spokeswoman Hiroko Nakamura told AFP. “We have decided to end shipments because demand for the cassette-type Walkman has decreased.”
The consumer electronics giant said that Chinese-made Walkman cassette players would still be exported to markets such as North America, Europe and Asia. The July 1, 1979 rollout of the portable cassette player helped transform Sony into a global electronics powerhouse. The Japanese giant sold 30,000 Walkmans in the first two months after its launch, and 50 million within a decade.
Published 25 October 2010, 16:42 IST