Don’t be surprised if you no longer see stunned prizewinners peering out their living room windows when one of the most recognizable vans pulls down a suburban street somewhere in America. Why, you ask? Because Publishers Clearing House has just announced that it’s moving to social media sweepstakes. That’s right. Wave good-bye to the days of the Prize Patrol handing over balloons and life-size checks to screaming families jumping for joy, and click hello to Twitter, Facebook and MySpace, where users will need to log on, sign up and see if they happen to be the big prize winners.

In an effort to reach a younger audience and try and gain some good publicity (remember the fiasco back in ‘90s when lawsuits were flying, accusing Publishers Clearing House of using deceptive advertising, a famous scandal involving many states?), PCH has decided to reinvent itself by going digital, even giving participants a shot at winning prizes, gift certificates and jackpots on its own Web site, where contestants can play PCHLotto, PCHGames or PCHQuiz4Cash. And PCH still remains a huge magazine subscription acquisition source.

It seems PCH wants to change its image so it can hang with the younger crowd. But, many of those who follow Twitter, and who have more than 200 friends on Facebook, may not have ever heard of this famous direct-mail company. But PCH does dangle the carrot in front of them, especially by offering prizes ranging from $100 to $2,500, a nice chunk of change to perhaps buy a new iPhone with.