by slasherindex | Jan 1, 1988
After a fierce 10-year format war between Sony’s Betamax and JVC’s VHS, Sony caves and reveals they would be adding VHS VCRs to their product line. They’re adamant that they’re not phasing out Betamax.
by slasherindex | Jun 1, 1987
The first laserdisc player compatible with the upcoming CD-Video (CDV) is launched by Pioneer with a price tag of $800. Later that year, the discs are released. They contain 20 minutes of digital audio, and 5 minutes of analog (laserdisc) video. These are the first...
by slasherindex | Apr 1, 1987
JVC introduces their first S-VHS (Super-VHS) VCR to the Japanese market, and then to the American market several months later in July for $1300. The new format offers 400 lines of resolution in comparison to standard VHS’s 240.
by slasherindex | Mar 11, 1987
Top Gun (1986) becomes the very first videocassette of a major film with a product commercial. In collaboration with Paramount Home Video, Pepsi places a 60-second ad before the start of the film. Because of the commercial, Paramount reduces the price of the...
by slasherindex | Jan 1, 1987
James Lardner’s account of the video industry, Fast Forward, is released. Its the first book to thoroughly document the rise of the VCR and the resulting legal battles.It includes interviews with such pioneers as Andre Blay and George Atkinson.