What is Diffusion Theory?
Diffusion Theory is the idea of how innovations and technologies spread through places and populations. Diffusion Theory was developed by Everett Rodgers in the 60's, this theory looks at different stages of a certain technology's life, and how people start to use it. One innovation we can look at and analyze is the Cassette Tape. After being developed in the early 60's in Belgium, it quickly spread all over the world. This innovation, at the time, was the new way to bring your music on the go, and have your own playlists of your favorite songs and genres.
We can easily see the life of the Cassette Tape as we break it up into the stages of the Theory.
The 5 Stages
1) Pioneers (1962-1970)
a) The Phillips Company invents the tapes and reveals them on a Belgian radio show. After this, the tapes started to spread over seas to America.
2) Early Adapters (1971-1980)
a) During this time, the public was buying more and more of the tapes to create playlists. And the they could now be listened on the go, with the invention of the Sony Walkman in 1980. This started the next meteoric rise of the innovation.
3) Early Majority (1981- 1989)
a) After the invention of the Walkman, the market and the popularity of the Cassette Tapes skyrocketed, and almost everyone was using the devices. Everyone had a mixtape, and everyone was sharing music.
4) Late Majority (1990-1999)
a) After the 80's boom the popularity started falling with the introduction of the CD. This new innovation allowed more space and longer life span over the Cassette Tapes.
5) Laggers (2000-2020)
a) After the 90s, the Cassette tape was almost extinct. However, with the younger generation using them as "retro technology," there is a certain life line for it still going.
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