RIP BMG

As I was perusing the internet this morning, I stumbled across a sad bit of news. BMG Music Service ceased operations earlier this year. Truly this signifies the end of an era. For the uninitiated, BMG was a mail order club where you could purchase CDs at great discounts. They were most famous for their "12 CDs For the Price of 1" subscription deal. The only real catch was the shipping charges, but the cost breakdown was still something like $3 or $4 per CD.

During its mid-90s heyday, BMG was the key to building my CD collection. Not only did I sign up a few times myself, but I was also one of their greatest spokesmen. You see, when you got others to sign up, you were given more free CDs. At one point, all of my siblings and several friends became members thanks to my efforts.

But things changed with the advent of CD burners. No longer did you and all your friends each have to buy separate copies of the same CD. Then iPods came along and it was all over. I actually clung to my BMG membership well after my CD purchasing prime—I only closed my account a few years ago.

I haven't totally outgrown media clubs though. These days I am a member of the Columbia House DVD Club. My purchasing doesn't come close to rivaling the BMG days, but the quantity discounts do come in handy during the holidays when we are stocking up on Christmas gifts. You know, I get two free DVDs for getting people to sign up. Who's interested?