Microsoft and Walmart team up to take on Amazon

ronjor · Jul 17, 2018

By Tom Warren@tomwarren Jul 17, 2018

Microsoft and Walmart are teaming up for a strategic partnership that will take on rival Amazon in both technology and retail. Walmart is announcing today, at Microsoft’s Inspire partner conference, that it’s partnering with Microsoft to use the company’s cloud services. The five-year agreement will see Walmart use Azure and Microsoft 365 across the company, alongside new projects focused on machine learning, artificial intelligence, and data platforms.
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bellgamin · Jul 17, 2018

Good! Amazon is so huge & efficient that it is approaching the status of a monopoly. A viable competitor will be wonderful for consumers. Next, Walmart needs to hire someone who knows how to design a website that, like Amazon's site, makes buying a more user-friendly, pleasant experience & doesn't load up every page with eye candy & useless animations.

ronjor · Jul 17, 2018

Walmart recently did a redesign. https://www.wilderssecurity.com/thr...food-shopping-experience.390433/#post-2754594
Still a lot of eye candy showing.

guest · Jul 21, 2018

Now is the time for Walmart to strike at Amazon Prime
July 21, 2018
https://techcrunch.com/2018/07/21/now-is-the-time-for-walmart-to-strike-at-amazon-prime/

For years users have been subject to these pressures, watching the price of Prime rise all the while, and meanwhile other services are getting better and better. Streaming services and exclusive content have multiplied, and Prime users are frequently left out in the cold.

The only one who can realistically break this deadlock is Walmart. Not by providing the same thing as Amazon, but by providing something simpler and more focused, taking over the workhorse duties of Prime (shipping, sales, some basic media of opportunity) at a much lower price, granting the customer freedom to pursue their own choice in subscriptions while not meaningfully affecting their online retail experience.

There are rumors of a Microsoft-powered standalone smart device, but that might conflict with existing voice-ordering partnership with Google. Still, voice assistants are hot and Walmart needs an answer to Alexa if it wants to compete directly with Amazon in the living room.
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ronjor · Aug 3, 2018

Walmart is testing an automated system to fulfill online grocery orders

By Shawn Knight
Walmart's new grocery-picking robot will free employees to work on other tasks
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Rasheed187 · Aug 4, 2018

bellgamin said: ↑

Good! Amazon is so huge & efficient that it is approaching the status of a monopoly. A viable competitor will be wonderful for consumers. Next, Walmart needs to hire someone who knows how to design a website that, like Amazon's site, makes buying a more user-friendly, pleasant experience & doesn't load up every page with eye candy & useless animations.
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I actually think Amazon's site looks like crap, it's bloated as hell. But yes, it could use some serious competition.

ronjor · Sep 4, 2018

Hard Lessons (Thanks, Amazon) Breathe New Life Into Retail Stores

By Michael Corkery Sept. 3, 2018
Stores that have learned how to match the ease and instant gratification of e-commerce shopping are flourishing, while those that have failed to evolve are in bankruptcy or on the brink.
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ronjor · Sep 4, 2018

Amazon joins $1 trillion club, on pace to overtake Apple

Sinéad Carew September 4, 2018
(Reuters) - Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) on Tuesday joined Apple Inc (AAPL.O) in the $1 trillion club, becoming the second member of the group after its stock price doubled in 15 months.
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ronjor · Sep 5, 2018

Walmart launches Spark Delivery, a crowdsourced pilot delivery program similar to Amazon Flex

Paul Sawers@psawers September 5, 2018 7:11 AM
Walmart has announced a new in-house pilot delivery service that crowdsources independent drivers to fulfill the “last-mile” delivery process.
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ronjor · Sep 13, 2018

Instacart links up with Walmart Canada to expand its same-day delivery service

Kate Clark@kateclarktweets
Instacart has teamed up with Walmart Canada to bring shoppers in Toronto and Winnipeg same-day grocery delivery.
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ronjor · Sep 13, 2018

Walmart to acquire Mexico & Chile-focused grocery delivery service Cornershop for $225M

Sarah Perez@sarahintampa
Walmart is ramping up its grocery delivery business on the international stage with today’s announcement that it has acquired the crowdsourced, on-demand delivery marketplace Cornershop for $225 million.
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bellgamin · Sep 14, 2018

ronjor said: ↑

Walmart to acquire Mexico...
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Wow!

ronjor · Oct 11, 2018

PayPal partners with Walmart to offer in-store balance withdraws, deposits

By Natalie Gagliordi for Between the Lines October 11, 2018
The service primarily targets the unbanked and underbanked, meaning people who can't afford or don't have access to mainstream financial services that make electronic banking possible. A 2015 survey from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. estimates around 7 percent of US households are unbanked, while 24.5 million households were considered underbanked.
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ronjor · Oct 23, 2018

Walmart makes improvements to third-party marketplace

NEW YORK — Oct 23, 2018 By Anne D'innocenzio
Walmart says it will work with third-party sellers to make millions of items available for free two-day shipping on orders over $35.
The company is also simplifying the returns process for eligible products bought from marketplace sellers. That includes allowing shoppers to return the items at any one of its 4,700 stores.
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guest · Oct 29, 2018

Walmart’s test store for new technology, Sam’s Club Now, opens next week in Dallas
October 28, 2018
https://techcrunch.com/2018/10/28/w...logy-sams-club-now-opens-next-week-in-dallas/

Walmart’s warehouse club, Sam’s Club is preparing to open the doors at a new Dallas area store that will serve as a testbed for the latest in retail technology.

Specifically, the retailer will test out new concepts like mobile checkout, an Amazon Go-like camera system for inventory management, electronic shelf labels, wayfinding technology for in-store navigation, augmented reality, and artificial intelligence-infused shopping, among other things.

And instead of scanning items at a point-of-sale cashier stand, customers will use a specialized Sam’s Club Now mobile app.

The shopping list will also be powered by A.I. Using a combination of machine learning and customer purchase history, the list will be pre-populated with customers’ frequent purchases. Those items can be removed from the list, if not needed.
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ronjor · Nov 5, 2018

Microsoft and Walmart to open joint engineering office in Austin as part of cloud partnership

Anna Hensel@ahhensel November 5, 2018
Microsoft and Walmart announced today that they’re opening a joint engineering office in Austin, Texas, as part of their recently announced five-year-strategic cloud partnership.
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ronjor · Nov 15, 2018

Walmart moves past Apple as No. 3 U.S. e-tailer, but Amazon still dominates

By Larry Dignan for Between the Lines | November 15, 2018
Walmart is still small relative to Amazon in e-commerce, but the company is making its move, according to eMarketer.
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guest · Dec 3, 2018

Walmart leads the way ... in floor scrubbing robots?
December 3, 2018
https://www.zdnet.com/article/walmart-leads-the-way-floor-scrubbing-robots/

Walmart is set to put a bunch of floor scrubbing robots to work in its stores by the end of Jan 2019. It's another foray into automation for the brick-and-mortar megastore [...]

The automated floor scrubbers are powered by an OS built by Brain Corp., a San Diego-based company that's been finding lucrative automation contracts with the likes of SoftBank and others.
"BrainOS technology allows robots to effectively and safely function in complex, crowded environments," says CEO Dr. Eugene Izhikevich, "ensuring increased productivity and efficiency across applications."

It's an attempt by Walmart to cut into Amazon's efficiency lead. The likely outcome will be a quick uptick in the number of robots consumers will see in the wild.
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guest · Dec 4, 2018

Walmart in-store shoppers can now order and pay for online orders
December 4, 2018
https://techcrunch.com/2018/12/04/walmart-in-store-shoppers-can-now-order-and-pay-for-online-orders/

Walmart this morning announced a new plan to help its retail store customers complete their purchases — even if the items they want aren’t available on the store’s shelves.

The customers will receive a receipt or email they can use to pay at the register in the store, after completing the ordering process with the sales associate’s help, Walmart says. And the item will ship immediately after the customer makes the payment at checkout.
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guest · Dec 7, 2018

Walmart buys Art.com to take on Amazon in home decor
December 7, 2018
https://www.engadget.com/2018/12/07/walmart-acquires-art-com/

Walmart announced that it is planning to acquire Art.com, a major online retailer of art and wall decor. The art seller will continue to operate as a standalone online storefront, but some of the platform's more than two million products will be available through Walmart.com, Jet and Hayneedle.

The purchase of Art.com marks a continuation of Walmart's online retailer spending spree.
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guest · Dec 11, 2018

Walmart has gobbled up a slew of brands since 2010 — and it's all part of a long-term strategy for taking on Amazon and winning over a new generation of shoppers
December 11, 2018
https://www.businessinsider.de/walmart-acquires-digital-brands-list-2018-12?r=US&IR=T

Walmart has been devouring online retailer after online retailer for the past few years.

So what's behind this banquet of brands? The fact that many of the acquired companies belong to the realm of e-commerce indicates that this is all part of Walmart's ongoing battle with Amazon.

So despite the spate of acquisitions, Walmart still has a long way to go [...]
Here's a look at the slew of digitally oriented brands that Walmart has scooped up in recent years: [...]
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guest · Dec 11, 2018

Walmart opens its first online store in Japan
December 11, 2018
https://www.engadget.com/2018/12/11/walmart-online-store-japan-rakuten/

Walmart has opened its first online store in Japan with the help of local e-commerce giant Rakuten. Over 1,200 items will be available to Japanese customers on the "Walmart Rakuten Ichiba Store," including clothing, outdoor items and toys from US brands

The new store is hosted on the Rakuten Ichiba digital "shopping mall" -- the country's largest e-commerce site. Walmart will fulfil orders in the US and ship them directly to customers in Japan, with shipping, duties, and taxes bundled into the product price.

The move is clearly Walmart's latest play to capture more of the Japanese e-commerce market, which is estimated to be worth 16.5 trillion yen ($148 billion) per year. While rival Amazon has found success in the country, Walmart still appears to be floundering
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guest · Dec 27, 2018

New e-commerce restrictions in India just ruined Christmas for Amazon and Walmart
December 27, 2018
https://techcrunch.com/2018/12/27/amazon-walmart-india-e-commerce-restrictions/

The Indian government is playing the role of festive party pooper for Walmart and Amazon after it announced new regulations that look set to impede the U.S. duo’s efforts to grow their businesses in India.

The three main takeaways from the new policy, which will go live on February 1, are a ban on exclusive sales, the outlawing of retailers selling products on platforms they count as investors, and restrictions on discounts and cashback.
Those first two clauses are pretty clear and will have a significant impact on Amazon — which has pumped some $5 billion into India — and Walmart, which forked out $16 billion to buy India-based Flipkart.
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ronjor · Jan 7, 2019

Microsoft and Kroger are taking on Amazon with a futuristic grocery store pilot

Sara Salinas | @saracsalinas 07 Jan 2018
The two outfitted Kroger locations, in Monroe, Ohio and Redmond, Wash., will feature digital shelving displays with real-time price updates and product information.
The displays will also feature digital advertisements personalized to the individual shopper.
The pilot is reminiscent of Amazon's new age shopping software.
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ronjor · Jan 15, 2019

Walgreens and Microsoft partner to develop digital healthcare services

January 15, 2019 Reporting by Saumya Sibi Joseph in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli
Walgreens and Microsoft will also develop healthcare solutions to reduce emergency room visits and decrease hospital readmissions while lowering the cost of care, the companies said.
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