Early MP3 Players (1998-2001)

Diamond Rio PMP-300 

FIRST: Commercially Successful MP3 Player

Released by Diamond Multimedia in 1998, the Diamond Rio PMP300 was the first commercially successful portable Mp3 player. Upon release, the Recording Industry Association of America sued Diamond saying that the player violated the 1992 Audio Home Recording Act. The judge for the case, Judge Andrea Collins, eventually ruled that the player was fair use and not a copyright infringement. After Diamond re-released the player, they sold 200,000 players. 

Archos Jukebox 6000 

The Archos Jukebox 6000 was released in 2001 by Archos. It was the first in Archos line of MP3 players. It was also one of the earliest Mp3 players to have a hard drive, and predates the iPod by one month.