get the best CD club deal The best BMG deal online is 12 CDs for the price of one, which is available to residents of the U.S. and its territories, along with members of the military who have APO-FPO addresses. As a new member you first choose seven free CDs up front, then purchase one from a club catalog (its entire selection totals more than 10,000 albums), then choose four more free titles. Shipping is $2.79 per CD.
The latest deals are offered by digital music clubs such as Napster, Yahoo, Rhapsody and eMusic, which typically allow you to stream or download songs and entire albums for $9.95 to $14.95 per month. The music is accessible on your computer or MP3 player as long as you remain a member. You also can purchase singles or albums for an additional fee that allows you to burn them to CDs or keep them after you cancel your membership.
The print catalog you receive every three weeks will include sales to entice you to buy more than the minimum. For instance, the club might offer a CD at half-price if you buy one at full price. If you have the patience, wait a few months before you make your full-price purchase. Usually if you don't buy immediately, the clubs up the ante. At BMG, for instance, they eventually offer a buy one, get two free offer. When they do, purchase your required full-price disc over the phone and order your remaining bonus and free discs at the same time. This will cut down on your shipping costs.
[You'll notice that the clubs don't offer all the same titles. This has to do with their licensing agreements with labels and artists. In many cases, the clubs don't pay any or full royalties on discs they give away, and some artists aren't desperate enough to accept that. Other conflicts arise because of corporate ownership. Columbia House, for example, doesn't offer music from the RCA label because RCA is owned by BMG. For the same reason, the BMG catalog doesn't include many Sony artists. If neither club carries the title you're after, try the site Deal Dude. You may be able to use online coupons to buy it at Amazon, Barnes & Noble or another store for a good price.]
If you ever receive a CD you didn't order, the clubs are good about letting you return it and will supply a return postage mailer if you phone first. You do have to send a short letter explaining the return, and too many returns might make it harder to rejoin. To reach BMG, phone 317-692-9200 or write cs1@bmgmusicservice.com. It doesn't have a toll-free number.
Once you've fulfilled your membership requirements and received your CDs, quit by writing "Please Cancel My Membership" on the card you have to send back, or notify the clubs in writing. You may get another card before your cancellation takes effect; return it to avoid any bookkeeping snafus. And don't sign up your friends through the offers that both clubs will send you — it's not the best deal that either of you can get.
After you've waited a few months and feel the need for more inexpensive music, join again. BMG doesn't seem to have strict rules about "in and outing" as long as you pay promptly and fulfill your membership requirements. Many people join more than once under variations on their name, or by using their home and work addresses. After you quit but before you rejoin, the lovesick club will attempt to woo you with offers that are never as good as the ones you can find in magazines. Don't feel bad about throwing these offers away — to the club, you are a name and checking account.