Walmart announced the completion of its $2.3 billion all-cash acquisition of TV maker Vizio, a move by the retailing giant to expand its advertising business.
The closing of the deal follows the expiration of the waiting period under federal regulations. Walmart announced the deal to buy Vizio in February 2024.
Walmart said the acquisition of Vizio will let it “bring to market new and differentiated ways for advertisers to meaningfully connect with customers at scale and boost product discovery” through Walmart Connect, the company’s U.S. retail media business.
Related Stories
Walmart and Vizio will continue to operate separately “for the foreseeable future,” according to the announcement. William Wang will continue to lead Vizio as CEO, reporting to Seth Dallaire, executive VP and chief growth officer of Walmart U.S.
Popular on Variety
Vizio, founded in 2002, is a leading vendor of value-priced HDTVs. Its device ecosystem and its smart TV operating system, SmartCast, provide free, ad-supported access to streaming content. To date, Vizio has garnered more than 19 million active accounts, growing approximately 400% since 2018. VIZIO has built this customer-centric platform on its devices enabling users to stream content for free by watching ads. Vizio’s Platform+ segment, which consists largely of its advertising business, now accounts for all the company’s gross profit.
Walmart plans to integrate Vizio’s ad business with Walmart Connect, which sells suppliers and sellers advertising across on-site and off-site digital properties and in stores.
Vizio has “always put customers at the center of their business — and that’s core to Walmart’s values and the omnichannel experiences we’re excited to roll out,” Dallaire said in announcing the closing of the deal. “Pairing it with Walmart Connect will be impactful and allow us to invest in our business even further on behalf of our customers.”
VIP+ Analysis: How Walmart Is Becoming a Streaming Power Player — and Amazon Rival
Wang commented, “Since the inception of Vizio, our mission has been to provide incredible value, great technology, and award-winning innovation. Today, with the tremendous number of resources from Walmart, we will continue to further accelerate that mission around the best home entertainment experience.”
With the deal close, Vizio is now a wholly owned subsidiary of Walmart, and Vizio’s Class A common stock will no longer be listed for trading on the NYSE, which is expected to take effect as of the close of market Tuesday. Vizio’s business will be reported as part of the Walmart U.S. segment going forward.
Due to “certain transaction-related costs” associated with the acquisition, Walmart said, it expects the transaction to be slightly dilutive to earnings per share both in the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2025 and for fiscal year 2026.
