Walmart partners with Rakuten for online groceries and ebooks

By Eric Brackett January 28, 2018

Walmart Black Friday — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Walmart has announced a partnership with Japanese e-commerce giant Rakuten, which will see the retail giant expand its operations in Japan and the U.S.

On the Japanese side of things, Walmart plans to use its partnership with Rakuten to expand its grocery footprint in the country. Walmart will begin offering online grocery service to Japan through its partnership with Rakuten.

Reuters reports that the new service will be named “Rakuten Seiyu Netsuper” and will replace Walmart’s existing online grocery service. It will allow customers to place their orders through Rakuten’s app, which will then be fulfilled by Walmart. In addition to using the existing Walmart’s existing Seiyu stores, it will build additional warehouses to help fulfill these orders.

Walmart is hoping that its partnership with Rakuten will allow it to expand into Japan’s growing online grocery market, which is less developed than it is in some other countries.

On the U.S. side of things, Walmart is taking advantage of Rakuten’s digital book service Kobo. Walmart will soon begin offering ebooks and audiobooks on its online store, allowing it to compete with the likes of Apple’s bookstore and Amazon’s Kindle.

According to Walmart’s blog, Kobo offers nearly six million books from thousands of different publishers, all of which will be available through Walmart’s website later this year. In addition to Kobo’s library of ebooks, of which Walmart will be one of the sole retailers, the company will also offer a selection of audiobooks. However, these will be arriving sometime after the ebooks.

The ebooks will be available via Walmart’s website, so consumers will have the option of purchasing a digital or hardcopy version while browsing the website.

Once purchased, the ebooks will be available on smartphones via an iOS and Android app. There will be a desktop version of the app as well. Walmart will also begin selling Kobo-branded eReaders later this year for those who want a dedicated device.

Walmart has said that it is positioning its upcoming catalog of ebooks as a supplement to its other digital content, such as movies and TV shows via Vudu or the time cards uses in MMOs such as World of Warcraft.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Business

Squarespace Courses: Empowering the next-generation of creative entrepreneurs

Squarespace Courses will allow entrepreneurs to create online learning solutions

This content was produced in partnership with Squarespace.
It's been clear from the very start that Squarespace was building and planning something truly special. If you don't already know, you can build professional-quality and beautiful websites through the platform with a remarkably easy tool set. You don't need any knowledge of web design or programming to get started, and you can have a site up in minutes. But thanks to how convenient it all is, it's become something of a go-to platform for digital and online creation. Now, Squarespace is elevating its all-in-one platform even more, offering something new to the next generation of entrepreneurs and creatives, who want to build their brands and monetize their audience. It's called Squarespace Courses, and like its website builder, the tool will allow customers to design and sell beautiful, multimedia courses to their customers.

Course designers will be able to create expansive programs across sequential lessons, using videos, and chapters, all while also offering progress tracking. As is customary for online courses, entrepreneurs can then create an overview of each course, set the prices for admission, and then allow potential students to preview content before making a purchase. Launching August 21st, 2023 this feature is simply not available through other easy-website-building platforms -- it's exclusive to Squarespace.

Deals

Semrush Free Trial: Try the advanced online marketing tool

Marketing will make or break your new venture. A lot more goes into running a traditional or ecommerce business than just registering a new domain, making a website -- even with a Wix free trial -- and calling it a day. Potential customers must be made aware that your business exists, and for that to happen in the digital age, you need to make use of modern online marketing tools. That's a broad field, though, encompassing keyword research, search engine optimization, data analytics, and other elements that can be pretty technical (not to mention intimidating) to the uninitiated. Enter Semrush, one of the best online marketing suites that makes all that stuff easy -- but it's not free. Maybe you want to give it a try before signing up for a premium subscription? If that's the case and you are looking for a Semrush free trial, then you're in luck. Read on. We have all the details for you, below.

Is there a Semrush free trial?

Computing

The best free antivirus software for 2023

A close-up of someone's hands as the person sits on a couch and types on a laptop.

For years, if you wanted the best antivirus software, you had to pay up for genuine protection and security. Any free antivirus software admittedly lacked some critical features, like fraud protection or link blocking.

While some antivirus programs cost money, there are plenty of free options with fantastic features. These days, you don’t always have to miss out on features like malware blockers just because these antivirus options are free. Plus, you can download these programs and start using them immediately.
The best free antivirus software at a glance