Walmart may recruit Ex-Epix chief for SVOD service

US retail giant Walmart is working with former Epix CEO Mark Greenberg on the launch of an OTT TV service that would target the the ‘Middle American’, non-urban US market, according to press reports.

According to the Wall Street Journal, citing unnamed sources, Walmart has been working on the project with Greenberg for several months.

The subscription service would be kept separate from Walmart’s existing streaming service Vudu, which has trailed behind market leaders Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and Hulu, and would  provide a mainstream mix of content, according to the report.

Trade paper Variety separately reported that Walmart was working with Greenberg, who left Epix last year after a decade running the service, which is now owned by MGM following the latter’s acquisition of stakes held by Lionsgate and Paramount Pictures.

Walmart’s plan to enter the OTT TV market was initially reported by The Information, which said that the retailer planned to offer a US$8 a month SVOD offering alongside a free, ad-supported services.

The Information also reported that Walmart was primarily interested in an offering that targeted middle America rather than the East and West Coast audiences that have flocked to Netflix and Amazon.