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Walmart's Amazon Prime competitor is delayed, again
Walmart+, a $98-per-year subscription service, was supposed to be out in July.
The coronavirus pandemic has been hindering Walmart’s plans to introduce its answer to Amazon Prime. According to Recode, the service called Walmart+ was originally supposed to roll out in March or April, but the retail giant was forced to push its launch back to July due to COVID-19. However, no launch happened last month either. Recode says it’s because Walmart has delayed the subscription service’s debut yet again, and it’s unclear if the company has a new date in mind. It’s also unclear if its availability will be limited to certain regions at first.
Walmart+ will start as a rebranded version of the company’s Delivery Unlimited service, which costs subscribers $98 a year for unlimited same-day deliveries for grocery and select goods. The company plans to add a lot more perks in the future, though, including early access to deals, fuel discounts at Walmart gas stations and access to a Scan & Go service that will give customers a quick way to pay for purchases without having to wait in line. Of course, for Walmart+ to become a veritable Prime rival, it also has to have video streaming. The company reportedly plans to add that component, as well, though details are still hazy at this point.
While Walmart+ doesn’t have concrete launch date yet, Recode notes that the project is a top priority for the company. Walmart needs a Prime competitor if it wants to catch up with Amazon, which is valued at $1.56 trillion and is the world’s biggest retailer by market value.
