NEW YORK >> Publishers Clearing House, a decades-old marketing and sweepstakes company known for doling out large “Prize Patrol” checks, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

In an announcement this week, PCH said it was using the bankruptcy process to “finalize a shift away” from its legacy business of direct-mail, retail merchandise and magazine subscriptions. The company is hoping to instead transition to a “pure digital advertising” model, where it will continue to offer free-to-play entertainment and prizes.

The Chapter 11 proceedings, filed in New York on Wednesday, arrive amid growing financial strain for PCH — which has struggled with rising operational costs and changing consumer habits in recent years.

Pivoting from its old way of doing business will help the company break free from past constraints and “establish a strong foundation for our future,” CEO Andy Goldberg said in a statement.

But that doesn’t mean the famous sweepstakes are going away. PCH says it plans to operate in a “business-as-usual manner” throughout the bankruptcy process — noting that the “Prize Patrol” team will continuing to deliver awards across the U.S. The company says it’s lined up debtor-in-possession financing from Prestige Capital to fund operations through its restructuring.

PCH’s roots date back to 1953 — when Harold and LuEsther Mertz and their daughter, Joyce Mertz-Gilmore, formed a business out of their Long Island, New York home to send direct-to-consumer mailings that solicited subscribers for a number of magazines through one single offering.

The company later grew with chances for consumers to win money — first launching a direct mail sweepstakes in 1967 — and expanded its offerings to a wide variety of merchandise, from collectible figurines to houseware and “As Seen on TV” accessories, in the years that followed. Its in-person “Prize Patrol” team was formed in 1989.

PCH became known for surprising prize winners with oversized checks, which was often filmed and featured in TV commercials.