DAT (Digital Audio Tape)

DAT (digital audio tape) came from Sony in 1987 and recorded uncompressed PCM audio onto a narrow tape using rotating, slanted heads — helical scan borrowed from the video recorder. The audio quality was excellent, and that was precisely what frightened the labels: a perfect digital copy threatened sales, and the fight over copy protection (SCMS) and US legislation choked the consumer market.

The computer world cared nothing for the copyright and adopted the technology. DDS (digital data storage), derived from DAT, became a standard format for server backup from 1989 and for a few decades after, before LTO took over the larger volumes. A tape held a few gigabytes, later tens.