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Walmart to Buy Vibe in Effort to Fuel TV Ad Business
Advertising Is Fast-Growing Business for Retail Giant
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Key Takeaways:
- Walmart Inc. on June 23 agreed to acquire Vibe.co to expand its connected television advertising business, with terms of the deal undisclosed.
- The move underscores Walmart’s push into advertising as a fast-growing profit driver, building on its $2.3 billion Vizio acquisition in 2024.
- The company is expected to integrate Vibe.co into its advertising ecosystem as it seeks to reach more shoppers and boost revenue beyond retail.
Walmart Inc. has agreed to acquire Vibe.co in an effort to expand its connected television advertising business, as the retailer seeks to reach customers more effectively.
Vibe.co is a platform that aims to simplify advertising offerings for small- and medium-sized brands, helping them promote products and measure their performance.
The deal will help Walmart support these companies more closely and reach more of them — an important cohort as many of its third-party marketplace sellers fall in this category.
“We want to be where our customers are spending their time,” Ryan Mayward, senior vice president and general manager of Walmart Connect U.S., said in an interview. “They are spending more and more time in a connected TV environment.”
As viewership has shifted to connected TVs — or TVs that connect to the Internet and stream content — more customers are discovering brands while watching shows and then turning to their Walmart apps to look at various items, Mayward said.
Through the acquisition, Walmart will help scale Vibe.co’s technology and make it easier for smaller companies to advertise.
JUST ANNOUNCED: Walmart has entered into an agreement to acquire @vibedotco, a self-serve CTV advertising platform built for SMB and mid-market advertisers. Together with Walmart Connect, https://t.co/n2hG9KZA6C will help make streaming TV easier to activate, optimize and… pic.twitter.com/ZAu0qOzv01 — Walmart News (@WalmartNews) June 23, 2026
The terms of the deal, which is expected to close by the end of the fiscal year, weren’t disclosed. Advertising is one of Walmart’s fastest-growing businesses, fueling profit growth.
The company’s last major deal was the acquisition of smart TV-maker Vizio, which Walmart paid $2.3 billion for in 2024 to boost its advertising business. The retailer has converted Vizio into a private-label brand sold exclusively in Walmart and Sam’s Club stores, Bloomberg News previously reported.
Walmart ranks No. 1 on the Transport Topics Top 100 list of the largest private carriers in North America and No. 32 on the TT Top 50 global freight companies list.
