• by Ray Schultz , Columnist, April 14, 2025

If the Publishers Clearing House prize team shows up at your door with one of those big checks, cash it before it bounces. The company, which is known for its consumer sweepstakes and subscription marketing, applied for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last week. 

Seriously, though, PCH isn’t going away — it will remain in business.

“By taking this step, we are breaking free from the past financial constraints of our legacy direct mail and online retail merchandise and magazine subscription operating model, and taking action to establish a strong foundation for our future — enabling PCH to unlock the full potential of our digital advertising and consumer insights business,” says Andy Goldberg, chief executive officer. 

Goldberg adds: “Importantly, our world-renowned sweepstakes will continue to be a cornerstone of our experiences, and we intend to continue offering free-to-play entertainment and awarding prizes in the ordinary course of business during and after this process to uphold the historic legacy of Publishers Clearing House.” 

The company’s liabilities top $50 million, and it has 100,000 creditors, according to its filing in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York. Its assets do not exceed $10 million, and could be lower. 

As direct mail mavens from way back, we hope it survives: It is quite a brand.

Founded by Harold Mertz and family in 1953 as a way to sell magazine subscriptions, PCH moved into sweeps a few years later and became one of the biggest direct mailers in the country. 

It also accumulated a full legal docket. State AGs and others complained constantly about copy that seemed to imply the recipient had already won. But the line we recall was conditional: “You may have already won.”

There also was some ambiguity about whether the person had to buy a subscription or something else to get the prize, which was not true. But some people believed it. 

More recently, PCH settled a complaint with the state of Iowa in 2009, agreeing to pay a $2,500 penalty each time it mailed seniors who had been removed from its mailing list. And it could no longer sell the names of high-spending customers to other sweepstakes operators. 

Despite all that, there’s one thing to remember about PCH: It always handed out the promised prizes. 

We’re not clear on how PCH subscriptions held up over the long term, compared to those directly generated by the magazine. But PCH did pull in some big numbers. And it was the subject of much popular humor, as when writer Calvin Trillin told an audience that his investment strategy consisted entirely of winning the PCH sweeps. 

Meanwhile, returning to the present, PCH has lined up debtor-in-possession financing from Prestige Capital. This funding, which must be approved by the court, will provide liquidity to support operations during the reorganization process. 

Good luck with it, PCH.