Walmart is planning to take a run at Amazon Prime by offering a fast delivery program that’s half the price.
The news, first reported by The Information, was confirmed by a Walmart spokesperson.
The program will roll out this summer, and will cost subscribers $50 per year. It will offer speedy shipping on over a million products – three days or less.
From the AP:
Ravi Jariwala, a company spokesman, said the offering is in response to increasing demands from customers who are looking for predictable and affordable shipping. It’s also part of Wal-Mart’s overall strategy to test new ways to serve customers who are increasingly researching and buying on their PCs or mobile devices and are looking for convenience.
Walmart’s unnamed program (codenamed Tahoe at the moment) is half the price of Amazon Prime, which offers free two-day delivery and costs $99 a year.
Of course, Amazon Prime comes with a handful of other perks – Amazon Prime Instant Video, Prime Music, and the Kindle Lending Library.
Walmart’s offering will focus on delivery only – at first. Walmart does have a streaming video arm – Vudu – but apparently there aren’t any immediate plans to work this into the new service.
Walmart has been trying to edge into the online shopping market for some time. Back in 2012, the company launched same-day delivery on some items in select cities. Last November, Walmart began price-matching Amazon at all of its locations – but that didn’t work out so well.
Image via Wikimedia Commons
