Development of this tape format was started in 1984 by DEC, and first known as CompacTape. The format started with a 94MB capacity, and the latest generation DLT S4 can hold up to 800 GB of data. To make it easier to recognize the various tape generations, each was assigned its own color. Wikipedia has a detailed list of the various drive models and DLT cartridges. Super DLT is a special DLT variety that allows increased storage densities by adding an optical servo system that ensures correct alignment of the data stracks with the read/write heads.
DLT tape, Photograph by Christian Taube, Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 2.0 Germany license
DLT has had a turbulent history; in 1994, DEC sold the technology and trademark to Quantum Corporation. Quantum then licensed this to various other companies. They were initially producing the higher capacity Super DLT or SDLT tapes themselves, while Benchmark Storage produced lower capacity cartridges. In 2002, Quantum acquired Benchmark, bringing all production in-house. Since then, the format has been licensed for production to Fujifilm, Maxell and Imation; Quantum-branded media are currently produced by one of these companies.
In february of 2007, Quantum announced that they’d stop development of the DLS S5 and V5 formats, focusing on the LTO format instead.
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