Videocassette and videocassette recorder

Video tape recording existed in broadcast studios since the 1950s—Ampex's quadruplex recorders captured live television for time-shifting across time zones. But these machines were enormous, expensive (over $50,000), and required skilled technicians. The adjacent possible for home video recording needed decades of component miniaturization before it could emerge.

The key enabling technology was helical scan recording, pioneered by Toshiba in 1959. Instead of spinning the tape past fixed recording heads at impractical speeds, helical scan wrapped tape around a tilted rotating drum, allowing much slower tape speeds while maintaining video quality. By the late 1960s, Japanese electronics companies had shrunk helical scan mechanisms enough for tabletop units. Sony's U-matic, introduced in 1971, was the first viable videocassette format—but at $1,000 for a blank tape and $1,395 for the deck, it remained a professional product.

The consumer breakthrough required another round of miniaturization and cost reduction. Sony's Betamax arrived in 1975, followed by JVC's VHS in 1976. What followed became one of technology's defining format wars. Betamax offered arguably better picture quality; VHS offered longer recording times (crucial for capturing entire movies). VHS also benefited from JVC's licensing strategy—more manufacturers meant lower prices and wider availability. By the early 1980s, VHS had won.

The cascade transformed home entertainment. Before VCRs, viewers watched what broadcasters chose to show, when broadcasters chose to show it. VCRs introduced 'time-shifting'—recording programs to watch later—fundamentally changing the relationship between audiences and media. The rental market exploded: Blockbuster Video grew from one store in 1985 to over 9,000 by 2004. Hollywood studios initially sued (Sony Corp. v. Universal City Studios reached the Supreme Court), but eventually embraced the home video market that would exceed theatrical revenues.

The VCR also created unexpected niches. Exercise videos became a billion-dollar industry. Self-help and instructional content found audiences. The ability to rewatch children's programming transformed parenting. And the format enabled private viewing of content that wouldn't air on television—contributing to VHS's dominance in markets Sony's Betamax couldn't serve. The technology was eventually displaced by DVD in the 2000s, but the behavioral change—the expectation that viewers control their own viewing—proved permanent and set the stage for streaming services decades later.