German Media Company Buys Columbia House

German media group Bertelsmann announced that it will purchase the record club Columbia House for $400 million.

Due to the popularity of online CD sites such as Amazon.com, CD club sales have diminished in the past few years.

Columbia House will be added to Bertelsmann’s U.S. CD club BMG Direct. Stuart Goldfarb, CEO of BMG Direct, will serve as president and CEO of the newly acquired company.

Bertelsmann is the fourth-largest media group in the world, that has risen due to its CD club business. BMG Direct is currently the largest direct to consumer retailer of recorded music in the UnitedStates. Columbia House currently is the largest specialized retailer of DVDs.

Sources:  CNN, Yahoo!, Audio Video Revolution