Overview
- A notice on Columbia House’s website said the company will stop accepting new orders after Sept. 15, 2026, and that some purchases with credit cards or existing credits can still be processed.
- The closure message was later removed from the site, but a Columbia House customer‑service representative confirmed to CNN that the business is soon ceasing operations.
- Columbia House began in 1955 as the Columbia Record Club and grew into a CD and mail‑order giant that peaked in the 1990s with roughly 16 million members and as much as $1.4 billion in annual sales.
- The company’s growth relied on low up‑front offers paired with negative‑option billing, a practice that automatically sent and billed items unless customers actively canceled, a model that drew long‑running consumer complaints and regulatory scrutiny.
- After declining with the rise of big‑box retail and digital music, Columbia House stopped selling music and narrowed to DVDs and Blu‑rays; its parent filed for bankruptcy in 2015 and Edge Line Ventures now operates the shrunken catalog, making the wind‑down a final chapter in the shift from physical media to streaming.