Walmart+ will allow subscribers to pick from Peacock or Paramount+

As part of its fifth anniversary celebration, Walmart has announced subscribers to its premium membership program Walmart+ will be able to customize their plan by picking between two different streamers.

The plan has included a free Paramount+ Essential account since 2022. 

Walmart+ users will now be able to pick between that and a Peacock Premium membership to their account. 

Walmart+ costs $98 a year and gives subscribers free delivery on groceries and prescriptions, free shipping on other qualifying orders, gasoline discounts and a streaming service.

The updated Walmart+ plan will only include either Peacock or Paramount+, but users will be able to pick which one they’d like. Customers will also be able to switch which streamer they receive every 90 days.

“The additional option of Peacock Premium adds even more value and more choice to our membership, without raising the price,” said Deepak Maini, senior vice president of Walmart+, in a statement. “By offering the ability to switch between two top-tier video streaming services, we’re empowering our members to customize their entertainment experience and enjoy significant savings. This is just one of the many ways we’re evolving Walmart+ to meet the needs and wants of today’s consumer.”

Both plans are ad-supported and also don’t include the ability to download content for offline viewing. Paramount+ Essential also does not include the live CBS feed access to the full Showtime library.

Peacock Premium, however, does include access to NBC’s live feed, though both plans do give users access to current season shows that have aired on their respective networks. 

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“This expanded partnership strengthens our collaboration across the NBCUniversal enterprise with Walmart and gives Walmart+ members seamless access to the wide variety of Peacock’s entertainment offering,” said Matt Schnaars, president, platform distribution and partnerships, NBCUniversal, in the statement. 

Under normal pricing, Paramount+ Essential costs $7.99 a year, with Peacock Premium coming in at $10.99.

At face value, this makes going with Peacock a better deal in terms of which plan would cost more to pay out of pocket, though perceived value could vary depending on which service offers the most appealing content to a subscriber.

It’s also possible that, with the switch option, Walmart+ subscribers could maximize their value by picking one service and then binging its offerings until the 90-day period is up before switching to the other and repeating the process, though such a strategy may not work for those who want to be up to speed on the latest drops.

Expanding access to another streaming option allows Walmart to give is members more flexibility. 

The notion of bundling streaming services with other subscription-based plans (as well as other streamers) is appealing to many companies because it allows them to deliver higher value to customers while also cutting down on cancellations because pulling the plug on one service would mean losing another one as well.

The exact terms of how Walmart’s deals with Paramount and Peacock work are not public.

For Paramount+ and Peacock, the Walmart deal likely opens up access to a broader audience. Because both plans include advertising, the streamers have access to another revenue stream as well.