Walmart Buys Vizio for $2.3 Billion, Eyes Ad Business Not TV Sales
• Walmart is acquiring Vizio for $2.3 billion to boost its ad business, not to expand its TV sales • Vizio makes most revenue from advertising through its Platform+ ad business and SmartCast TV operating system • The deal will give Walmart access to Vizio's user data to improve ad targeting and measure effectiveness • Vizio TVs could become more ad-centric, potentially worsening the viewing experience for customers • The deal shows that smart TVs are now more of a software/ads business rather than a hardware one