Betamax was specifically designed as a consumer format. The cassette size was chosen to be similar to a paperback book. At the time, the industry didn't antici

Betamax was specifically designed as a consumer format. The cassette size was chosen to be similar to a paperback book. At the time, the industry didn't anticipate that people would view feature length movies on their video cassette players. The professional betamax format only shares the name.