Columbia House, which once promised 12 CDs for a penny, removes notice of closure
The mail-order business that once had millions of subscribers said it would cease operations in September
A mail-order club that once offered new members as many as 12 CDs for a penny has announced its closure after 71 years. But Columbia House, which ceased music sales and Canadian operations in 2010, removed the closing announcement from its website on Tuesday.
CBC News has reached out to the company for more information about its future.
Music enthusiasts first spotted the closing notice this weekend. It said, "after 9/15/26, The Columbia House will no longer be accepting new orders."
The company was originally started by Columbia Records in 1955 as Columbia Record Club, aiming to expand music sales to regions where consumers didn't have access to record stores. The mail-order business exploded, adding new technology as it evolved, including cassettes and CDs. Eventually, DVDs of films and TV shows were added.
Early customers were lured in by magazine and newspaper inserts that promised multiple records, tapes or CDs if customers simply mailed in a penny — provided that they also agreed to purchase a minimum number of musical releases every month going forward.
The model was successful: according to a 2011 article from the Boston Phoenix, Columbia House had shipped more than a billion records and accounted for 15 per cent of all CD sales by 1994.
But revenue dipped as music consumers started finding more options online. In 2010, then owned by Direct Brands, Columbia House stopped selling music, shifting its mail-order business to solely DVDs. It also closed operations in Canada.
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If this week's news sparks deja vu, that may be because the parent of Columbia House, then Filmed Entertainment Inc., already filed for bankruptcy in the U.S. in 2015 — but the company has been quietly limping along on DVD sales until now.
The company said in 2015 that its revenue had peaked in 1996 at approximately $1.4 billion US.
The news comes amid a swell of enthusiasm for physical media. Data compiled by Music Canada from a report on global music trends found that 2025 was another banner year for vinyl sales, with record stores also reporting an uptick in business.
WATCH | This London burger joint is bringing back video rentals:Although many already said their goodbyes to Columbia House's nostalgic model of music collection amid the flurry of articles around the 2015 bankruptcy filing, this week's news has music appreciators flocking to social media to honour the company that once helped them build their music libraries — and to joke about unpaid fees.
"I'm pretty sure that I still owe Columbia House money," one user posted on X on Sunday, alongside an image of an old Columbia House ad offering any 8 CDs or 12 cassettes for one penny.
CBC News has reached out to Columbia House after the notice of closure disappeared from its website but have not yet received a response.