CDNOW.com

Founded in 1994, CDnow.com was one of the first online music retailers and a highly successful startup at the beginning of the .com era. In March of 1999, CDnow acquired Music Blvd which was a major competitor at the time. Future plans for expansion included a merger with Columbia House. Unfortunately those plans fell through, leaving CDnow depleted of funds to continue operations. Shortly after, the Bertelsmann Music Group (BMG) bought CDnow for $117 million. Two years later, the company's Philly-area office was shut down with most of its business being redirected to Amazon.com.