Walmart, Paramount+ Reach Video-Streaming Deal

Walmart Inc. said it has agreed to a deal with Paramount Global to offer the entertainment company’s Paramount+ streaming service to subscribers of Walmart’s membership program.

The Wall Street Journal reports Walmart has been exploring a subscription video-streaming deal to draw more people to Walmart+ as it seeks to challenge Amazon.com Inc., which has grown its own Prime membership program to about 200 million global members.

The companies agreed to a 12-month exclusivity agreement and a two-year deal that would give Walmart+ members access to Paramount’s ad-supported streaming service, according to people familiar with the deal. The perk will be available starting in September, Walmart said.

The deal is the latest tie-up in the fast-changing streaming industry, where a growing group of companies are looking to bundle content to draw viewers or customers. YouTube is planning to launch an online store for streaming video services and has renewed talks with entertainment companies about participating in the platform. YouTube, which is owned by Alphabet Inc., would join Apple Inc., Roku Inc. and Amazon, which all have hubs to sell streaming video services.

Walmart executives have held talks in recent weeks to discuss a streaming deal with executives at Walt Disney Co., Comcast Corp. and Paramount Global, according to people familiar with the matter.

Paramount Global runs the Paramount+ service, which has shows such as “Halo,” the “Star Trek” series and “Paw Patrol.” The company said this month that Paramount+ had more than 43 million subscribers at the end of its latest quarter.

Walmart introduced Walmart+ in 2020 and aims to use the service to add new streams of revenue beyond selling goods, as well rival the success Amazon has had with its Prime membership services. A subscription to Walmart+ costs $12.95 a month or $98 a year and includes free shipping on online orders and discounts on gasoline. The retailer has added perks to build interest, such as six months of the Spotify music-streaming service.