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Memorex

The "Is it live or is it Memorex?" tape brand that ruled magnetic media — still around as a licensed name

Transformed — Memorex was a pioneering magnetic-tape and data-storage company founded in 1961 in California. The brand still exists today, but it is a licensed consumer name rather than the giant of tape and storage it once was.

Memorex was founded in 1961 in Santa Clara, California, and grew into one of the most recognizable names in magnetic media. It made computer tape, disk drives and blank audio and video tape, and it built a national reputation with its unforgettable 1970s advertising campaign "Is it live or is it Memorex?" — famously featuring Ella Fitzgerald shattering a glass with her voice and the sound being reproduced on Memorex tape.

The company became a leading supplier of recording media and storage products during the 1970s and 1980s, when blank cassettes and floppy disks were everyday consumer goods. As the industry shifted, Memorex changed hands repeatedly, and its identity as a tape maker slowly gave way to that of a licensed brand.

Today Memorex still appears on consumer electronics and media products, but it no longer commands the market it once did. It survives as a name from the golden age of physical media rather than a top-tier storage company.

Quick facts

Founded

1961, Santa Clara, California

Famous for

"Is it live or is it Memorex?" ads

Products

Magnetic tape, blank cassettes, storage

Era

1970s-80s peak of physical media

Status

Licensed consumer brand

Legacy

Icon of the cassette and tape era

Sources

1. Memorex - Wikipedia — Wikipedia (2026-09-05)
2. Imation announces close on acquisition of Memcorp assets — ThomasNet/Imation (2026-09-05)

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