Publishers Clearing House history

When PCH moved its headquarters in 1969, its prior location was donated to the city and renamed the Harold E. Mertz Community Center.

PCH began advertising the sweepstakes on TV in 1974.

PCH began advertising the sweepstakes on TV in 1974. It was the only major multi-magazine subscription business until 1977.

Publishers Clearing House had its chosen field to itself until 1980, when a consortium of Time Inc., McCall's Corp., and Meredith Corp. formed rival American Family Publishers.

Publishers Clearing House's annual sales were about $50 million in 1981, when Robin Smith, a former Doubleday executive, became its president and chief executive officer.

Starting in 1985, the company’s product offering was broadened to include a wider range of merchandise including household and personal items, home entertainment, collectibles and more.

In 1987, the company added a "Catalog Clearing House" sweepstakes that included inserts promoting 36 products from a selected group of catalogers.

Annual revenues passed the $100 million mark in 1988.

In 1989 two members of its advertising team, Dave Sayer and Todd Sloane, started the Prize Patrol, a publicized event where winners are surprised with a check at their home.

By then, PCH had distributed more than $50 million in prizes to more than two million people, including $13 million in fiscal 1991.

The 1992 year-end package arrived with a new "snap-pack" on the front of the envelope, which had to be peeled open to find the finalist notification label to paste onto the finalist notification certificate--in other words, the entry form.

Vice-president Tom Owens told a Washington Post reporter in 1993, "You talk to winners, all they want to do is pay their bills and do very mundane things."

1994: The company settles the first of several multi-state lawsuits.

Sales volume from the mid-1995 mailings of PCH and American Family Publishers was reported to be down 22 percent.

By January 1996, PCH had awarded more than $92 million in prizes since instituting its sweepstakes.

PCH was thought to have revenue of $345 million by 1997, and this year was the last before the start of a rough patch, defined by numerous lawsuits and a steep drop in subscription orders.

Magazine industry sources claimed that orders were down by between 30 and 50 percent by late 1998.

PCH reached a $30 million national settlement in 1999.

Yet in early 2000, the company announced it had taken a drastic cost-cutting measure, laying off about a quarter of its employees.

In 2001, PCH settled an additional round of lawsuits, paying $34 million to 26 states.

The company celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2003, with festivities in Port Washington.

In 2004, the company's Prize Patrol delivered a $25,000 check to a retired Wichita couple who had been married for more than 50 years.

In 2006, it acquired Blingo Inc., an ad-supported metasearch engine that was later re-branded as PCH Search and Win.

PCH also reached an agreement with Iowa in 2007.

In 2008, a PCH spokesperson said the digital properties were intended to attract younger consumers.

In December 2010, PCH acquired Funtank and its online gaming site Candystand.com.

In 2011, PCH promoted a "$5,000 every week for life" sweepstakes in TV ads and the front page of AOL.com.

In April 2014, an investigation by the Senate Special Committee on Aging concluded that PCH had "pushed the limits" of prior agreements and that additional legislation may be needed.