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Growing up, portable cassette players were always called "freestyles" here. I never knew it was a marketing thing, or that some other countries also objected to the naming.

this is "original research", which means i dicked around on the internet archive for half an hour. it may be wrong.

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[-] lime@feddit.nu 4 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago)

that i can actually answer! there was an entire movement/subculture thing anchored to the word "freestyle" in the late 70's-early 80's. think rollerblading, skateboarding, downhill skiing, extreme sport stuff, and pastel overalls, headbands and sunglasses:

there was even a band named freestyle. my mum was really into them as a teen.

also, sony sweden insisted. they were adamant that "people wouldn't get it" if the thing was called a walkman. and they were right; the word freestyle is still in common use, while "walkman" never really took off.

[-] retrolasered@feddit.uk 3 points 6 days ago

Swedes love freestyle skateboarding. 2 in particular might be responsible for the sport still existing in Europe at all, Stefan Akesson and Denis Sopovic.

[-] lime@feddit.nu 3 points 5 days ago

oh wow, stefanie is even from the same area as me and i had no idea

[-] huppakee@feddit.nl 1 points 5 days ago

I have to admit a freestyler sounds better than a stowaway and a sound-about for sure. Might even beat Walkman if I never heard of either words and could make a decision unbiased. Do you also know anything about Australia's reason?

[-] lime@feddit.nu 2 points 5 days ago

i have no idea :/ a while back i read an interview with the guy at sony sweden who made the decision, but for australia there is literally no info. i sincerely doubt it was a coordinated effort, since it went on sale in like 1979.

[-] huppakee@feddit.nl 1 points 5 days ago

Maybe they saw a vhs of Swedish freestylers and said we want that too.

this post was submitted on 01 Aug 2025
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