Walmart is in discussions with several industry players as the mega-retailer looks to build its own streaming service, according to a new report from The New York Times (opens in a new tab).
The trade says Walmart has held discussions with the likes of Paramount, Disney and Comcast as it seeks a path into the streaming space. There’s no word yet on what these conversations focused on, or if they ultimately amounted to anything meaningful, but it looks like Walmart wants a piece of the profitable pie.
Any Walmart streaming service would be offered as an incentive for Walmart Plus members. It has compared the service to Amazon Prime throughout the year. Premium subscription services offer many similar benefits, including free shipping, exclusive offers, and early access to next-gen console supplies.
As Walmart looks to enter the streaming space, its Prime Video service has become a key part of Amazon’s offerings to Prime members, with hit shows like The Boys and The Terminal List garnering a lot of interest. It looks like Walmart now wants its own Prime Video to keep up with its fierce competition with Amazon.
This wouldn’t be Walmart’s first time exploring the world of streaming, either. In 2010 the retailer bought Vudu, a digital video store and streaming service, but largely abandoned the service before selling it to Fandango in 2020. There have also been previous rumors that Walmart was planning its own streaming service starting in 2018, but not until now. however, these reports have not resulted in anything tangible.
Analysis: is there room for Walmart in streaming?
The world of streaming is becoming more and more crowded with more and more services popping up every few months. Read also : Jennings man threatens hospital, harms business American press. At this point, it takes something special to cut through the noise and compete with major players like Netflix, Disney Plus, and HBO Max.
Walmart, of course, has the resources to build a streaming service that can compete for a seat at the table. But from a customer perspective, it’s hard to see the appeal of another streaming service competing for a monthly subscription fee.
After all, as the cost of living continues to rise, signing up for multiple streaming services at once is becoming more and more practical for millions of people. There is a real possibility that many households will be able to consolidate and maintain only one or two services going forward, Walmart may be a little late.
Breaking into the market as a rival to the streaming big boys will be incredibly tough, but Walmart may not want to launch a traditional service. Instead, the plan could be to create something similar to Prime Video’s Channels feature, which allows users to subscribe to alternative services within the Prime Video interface.
There’s also a chance these rumors of a Walmart streaming service will come to nothing. The retailer appears to be in preliminary discussions with companies in the streaming space, but it’s likely that nothing concrete will come of those talks for a while, if ever.
However, Walmart clearly has a fascination with streaming and may think that getting into the space is worth the significant time and cost involved. Maybe in a few years we’ll be rounding up the best movies and TV shows on Walmart Plus Video.
Rory is the Deals Editor for Tom’s Guide based in the UK. It covers a wide range of topics, but with a special focus on deals, games and streaming. When he’s not giving PS5 resets to salespeople or writing about the latest in gaming hardware and streaming shows, he can be found attending music festivals and getting completely frustrated with his awesome soccer team.
Rory is the Deals Editor for Tom’s Guide based in the UK. It covers a wide range of topics, but with a special focus on deals, games and streaming. When he’s not giving PS5 resets to salespeople or writing about the latest in gaming hardware and streaming shows, he can be found attending music festivals and getting completely frustrated with his awesome soccer team.
