CDNOW.com was among the first successful global online retailers. The company was founed in February 1994 by twin brothers Jason Olim and Matthew Olim of Ambler, Pennsylvania. Initially launched as a telnet service in August 1994, CDNow became a retail website in September 1994-- far earlier than most of the dot.com retailers that gained notoriety after 2000. Employees repeatedly noticed that CDNow's innovations tended to run a full year ahead of the nascent internet industry.