Lou Ottens was born on 21st June 1926. From a very young age, he created a lot of things, as a teenager his keen interest in engineering ended up him building a radio for his parents.
Cassette tapes were developed in the 60’s. Otten’s invention brought about a profound change in the lifestyle of music listeners around the world. However, in the long run, the business of cassette wheels slowed down as the era of CDs was over and songs could be easily carried on pen drives.
In the 1960s, Ottens was chairman of Philips’ product development department. He with his team Together they invented the same audio cassette.
After being screened at the Berlin Radio Electronics Fair in 1963, with the tagline “Smaller than a pack of cigarettes!” his invention was a worldwide success. He had contracted his inventions specifically with Philips and Sony. He has also made a significant contribution in the development of compact discs. More than 100bn cassette tapes and 200bn CDs have been sold.
His family sources made it public on Tuesday that Engineer Ottens had passed away last weekend in his hometown of Duisel. In an interview with a Dutch newspaper NRC Handelsblad, he said “Nothing can match the sound of the CD”.
