*By Michael Teich*
Walmart's reported plans to launch a streaming video service may prove futile, said The Information reporter Jessica Toonkel. After all, the retailer, she told Cheddar on Wednesday, is late to the game.
"Netflix and Amazon have been doing this for a while," Toonkel said. "This is a really hard business to get into."
Toonkel broke news this week that Walmart may develop a subscription-based video service to compete with Netflix and Amazon Prime Video. The retailer is considering a price point below $8 per month and may also include an ad-supported free service.
What's the likelihood that Walmart will actually enter the streaming business? That depends on its willingness to spend billions of dollars, Toonkel explained. But after generating $17 billion in cash last year, the company potentially has enough ammo to match Netflix's aggressive spending budget, pegged at $8 billion for 2018.
But it's not just a matter of cash flow, Toonkel said. "They have a lot of money, clearly, but they also have investors that might not be as patient as investors in Netflix."
Walmart's last attempt to enter video content faltered ー in 2010 the retailer acquired Vudu, a video-on-demand service that currently offers a combined 100,000 movie titles and television series. But analytics firm comScore reported that users spent only 18,000 hours on the platform in May, just 2 percent of the total hours spent on Netflix and 6 percent of hours spent watching Amazon in the same period.
For the full segment, [click here.](https://cheddar.com/videos/walmart-could-launch-video-streaming-platform)
Digital consulting company Publicis Sapient has its sights set on the Metaverse. The subsidiary of the French advertising giant Publicis Group is announcing a new partnership with NFT auction house Portion in an effor to help brands deliver experiences in the metaverse, including the sales of products. Publicis Sapient CEO Nigel Vaz joined Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss. "In the context of our collaboration with Portion, the first experience that we created was with Decentraland, which is a virtual world," he said. "And car manufacturers in this metaverse, in terms of their buyers, can interact with a virtual person, (and) they can view quality NFTs. They can examine a virtual vehicle, be inside the car, rev an engine, open doors, all without leaving their homes."
Identity and access management company ForgeRock looks to use pattern recognition and artificial intelligence to ease secure access for users as an alternative to just password management. CEO Fran Rosch joined Cheddar News to discuss how the company's services work. "I mean, who likes to set up and use a new password? And they're also really bad security because a lot of people repeat the same one and use it everywhere and use the simplest one possible," he said. "We're trying to really create a smarter better identity system where we can find different ways, smarter ways, of recognizing you as a user and giving you access to what you need by really eliminating the password altogether."
Ford announced today that it will be separating its electric vehicles business from its internal combustion engine vehicles in two divisions named Ford Model E and Ford Blue, respectively. Ford Motor Company CFO John Lawler joined Cheddar to discuss the decision-making behind the restructuring. "When you think about the expertise that Ford has in like body structural engineering, chassis engineering, manufacturing at scale, there isn't an EV startup company out there that wouldn't love to have our capabilities in that space," he said.
Amazon is confirming it’s closing all of its physical bookstores as well as its 4-star shops and pop up locations as the online behemoth reworks its physical footprint.
As Russia continues to invade Ukraine, its tech outsourcing sector is at risk. Over the past few years, the country has become a popular outsourcing destination for American and European tech companies, but now the future of that industry is uncertain. Isabelle Bousquette, enterprise technology reporter, for The Wall Street Journal, discusses what repercussions the crisis might have on the industry, and what companies are doing to mitigate possible disruptions.
The Mobile World Congress is underway in Barcelona this week. The annual global trade show is showcasing the latest advancements in mobile and other progressive technologies.
Katie Collins, Senior European Correspondent, CNET joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to break down the latest announcements.
NerdWallet reported strong fiscal Q4 results in its first earnings report as a publicly traded company. The personal finance company saw revenue increase 75 percent year-over-year as the company witnessed a rebound in consumer demand as the pandemic wanes. Tim Chen, Founder & CEO, NerdWallet joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss.
Kraft Heinz is launching a new joint venture with NotCo, a Chilean startup that creates plant-based substitutes using artificial intelligence. The goal is to reimagine global food production and bring plant-based versions of Kraft Heinz products to market at a faster speed, all while driving sustainability. Matias Muchnik, CEO and Co-Founder of NotCo, joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss the partnership, NotCo's technology, and his response to the backlash against the ingredients in meatless meat.
