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Thursday 12 OcTOber 2017 TECHNOLOGY
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Walmart sees the future and it is digital

By ANNE D’INNOCENZIO in August. And starting next
and MICHELLE CHAPMAN month, returns may be
AP Business Writers getting easier. Customers
NEW YORK (AP) — Walmart can scan goods they no
is all about online, antici- longer want with a smart-
pating digital sales next phone and drop them off
fiscal year will rise about at a customer service desk.
40 percent and that it will Walmart says that will take
double the number of U.S. 35 seconds or less. Returns
curbside locations for on- right now take about four
line grocery shoppers at times that, not including
its stores. But the world’s any wait in line.
largest retailer continues Earlier this year, Wal-Mart
to scale back new store revamped its shipping pro-
growth in the U.S., with gram and now offers free,
plans to open only 25 in its two-day shipping for online
fiscal year 2019, which ends orders of its most popular
January 2019. That com- items with a minimum pur-
pares with opening 230 In this Thursday, June 1, 2017, photo, customers walk out of a Walmart store in Hialeah Gardens, chase order of $35.
new U.S. stores during fiscal Fla. Walmart says it’s critical
2016. Associated Press to get shoppers to spend
The retail behemoth is pre- Inc., in an address Tuesday ers at a hundred of its shoppers’ homes with inter- both online and in stores.
dicting net sales growth at to investors at an annual stores which spit out prod- net-connected locks when Store shoppers who be-
or above 3 percent, driven meeting in Bentonville, Ar- ucts bought on Walmart. they’re not there to drop come online customers
by online sales and growth kansas. “Our future is look- com. But it has an eye off packages or put gro- spend nearly twice as
from existing stores for the ing more digital.” on expanding on grocer- ceries in the fridge. much overall. And those
next fiscal year. The retailer is armoring up ies online, an underserved The company went live with who use online grocery
The company reiterated online to take on Amazon. market. Walmart has fast voice-activated shopping pickup buy more overall.
its per-share earnings guid- com and more traditional expanded the number of with Google in answer to But as Walmart moves into
ance for next year and rivals, like Target. Walmart U.S. stores that allow online Amazon’s Alexa-powered the digital space dominat-
launched a two-year, $20 paid more than $3 billion grocery shoppers to pick Echo devices. Walmart said ed by Amazon, Amazon is
billion share repurchase for online retailer Jet last up orders at the curb. Cur- customers can now start encroaching on the physi-
program. Shares rose more year to speed its evolution. rently 1,000 U.S. locations shopping for more than 2 cal realm to win over more
than 4 percent on the news It’s been acquiring small- are participating. million Walmart items via customers.
“No doubt we are in a er players like ModCloth, Walmart is also testing the Google Assistant as well In August, Amazon closed
transformational period of Moosejaw and Bonobos. idea of a new service in as Google Express and its on its $13.7 billion purchase
history,” said Doug McMil- It’s also deploying digital Silicon Valley that lets a app. Walmart announced of Whole Foods Market
lon, CEO of Walmart Stores kiosks called Pickup Tow- delivery person walk into its partnership with Google and quickly lowered prices
on key products. It also cut
Reports: Google a deal with Kohl’s that al-
lows for the return of Ama-
zon goods at stores in Los
uncovers ads by Angeles and Chicago,
which are packaged and
shipped out by workers
Russian operatives there. Moody’s lead retail
analyst Charlie O’Shea
said Walmart is giving
shoppers a “compelling
NEW YORK (AP) — Russian The Washington Post ear- online alternative to Ama-
operatives likely spent tens lier reported that the tech- zon” and views its online
of thousands of dollars on nology behemoth uncov- sales forecast as an “im-
ads across Google prod- ered the Russian-backed pressive goal, especially
ucts, including YouTube disinformation campaign on the heels of the 30 per-
and Google search, ac- as it considers whether to cent (growth) outlined at
cording to reports. testify before Congress This Wednesday, April 26, 2017, file photo shows the Google the 2016 investor meeting,
Accounts connected with next month, also citing mobile phone icon, in Philadelphia. which at the time seemed
the Russian government anonymous sources famil- Associated Press aspirational.”
spent $4,700 on search iar with the investigation. “The redeployment of sig-
and display ads, while an- Social media companies said it has a “set of strict inquiries,” the statement nificant capital expen-
other $53,000 was spent Facebook and Twitter ads policies including limits continued. diture dollars from new
on ads with political mate- have already agreed to on political ad targeting Facebook recently shared stores in the U.S. to online
rial that were purchased testify. and prohibitions on target- about 3,000 Russian- improvements and store
from Russian territory, from The reports said the com- ing based on race and re- backed ads with Con- remodels, especially the
Russian internet addresses, pany discovered the Rus- ligion.” gress. 1,000 store increase in in-
or with Russian currency, sian presence by analyz- “We are taking a deeper U.S. intelligence agencies store grocery pick-up lo-
The New York Times re- ing information shared by look to investigate at- have concluded that Rus- cations, will help Walmart
ported . Twitter and Facebook, as tempts to abuse our sys- sian President Vladimir Pu- maintain its market-leading
The Times cited an un- well its own research and tems, working with re- tin directed a disinforma- position in the US grocery
named person familiar tips from outside research- searchers and other com- tion campaign aimed at segment,” O’Shea said.
with the ongoing inquiry ers. panies, and will provide helping Donald Trump win Shares rose $3.60 to $84.13
by the search giant. In a statement, Google assistance to ongoing the presidential election.q Tuesday.q