CDNow

CDnow was founded in February 1994 by twin brothers Jason Olim and Matthew Olim in their parents' basement in Ambler, Pennsylvania. Initially launched as a Telnet service in August 1994, CDNow became a retail website in September 1994 using Valley Records Distributors as a drop-ship fulfillment center. With three employees, the company moved near the Penllyn train station in Lower Gwynedd Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania and a couple years later it moved to the Strawbridge & Clothier building in Jenkintown, Pennsylvania. In December 1994, CDNow claimed to be the first company that allowed people to buy albums online. At the time, it said it had over 140,000 different albums available for purchase on its web site. In 1995, an article in the Los Angeles Times said that CDNow had brought the web "one step closer to the day when artists will market directly to consumers, cutting out distributors such as record labels."

In 1997, the company had revenues of $18 million and in February 1998, with 100 employees, the company became a public company via an initial public offering. CDNow then embarked on a large Internet advertising campaign, and was an innovator in preference-based retail recommendations, online video, the use of editorial content as a means to promote interest internet affiliate marketing programs, and email marketing. On March 17, 1999, CDNow acquired its largest competitor, another Philadelphia area company, N2K, whose online properties included Music Boulevard and Jazz Central Station. In July 1999, the company announced a deal to merge with Columbia House, establishing a new public company jointly held by CDNow's shareholders, Time Warner and Sony.