Walmart had to “unlearn” how to serve customers, Global Chief Technology Officer and Chief Development Officer Suresh Kumar told a National Retail Federation webinar Tuesday. Data and insights “became our lifelines,” he said. He cited machine learning and AI that “helped us make smart decisions a lot faster.” With the holiday sales season ahead, Kumar said the retailer “doubled down” on omnichannel shopping processes that the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated. He cited machine learning, data, edge computing and augmented reality coming together in its app that's used by employees. Online volume scaled exponentially during the pandemic, and machine learning helped deploy stores as fulfillment hubs, said Kumar. Sam’s Club customers use computer vision to shop and check out using smartphones, without using bar codes. Voice technology will have an increasing role at Walmart, said Kumar. It's a natural extension of the user interface that’s more intuitive and efficient than typing, he said. “Voice is going to free us a lot further.”
Advertising-supported VOD growth could stall due to content fragmentation, and the move toward original programming will worsen this, nScreenMedia's Colin Dixon blogged Sunday. A chief problem is that not all services are available on all devices, the analyst said, citing NBCUniversal's Peacock not being available to Amazon Fire TV users.
The 3rd Generation Partnership Project approved technical specifications that will let Ligado's L-band spectrum be used in 5G networks, the company said Monday. It said the 3GPP approvals will let vendors build compatible 5G and LTE products. This “gives us what we need to accelerate our commercial ecosystem activities and expand Ligado’s roster of partners to deploy this much-needed spectrum,” said Ligado CEO Doug Smith. The L-band uplinks are a “critical asset” for 5G and the approval “is a solid accomplishment,” New Street Research analyst Jonathan Chaplin wrote investors. He said the final major step is getting radio and chipset vendors to incorporate the spectrum into their designs.
Univision Communications will launch a streaming service in the U.S. and Latin America next year with ad-supported and premium subscription-based options, it said Monday. Pricing will be announced after the Televisa-Univision transaction is completed later this year (see 2104140067). The service will include “more Spanish-language originals than any other streaming service,” the company said. Univision’s current streaming and on-demand services will “be transitioned and unified into one global service and brand.” The free tier will have more than 100 linear channels and a news service; the subscription tier will include more than 6,000 hours of Spanish-language content and more than 30 original productions, it said. See also the personals section of this issue.
Prime Day rolled out without incident Monday as Amazon avoided website bottlenecks of previous years with a 3 a.m. EDT start. Detractors warned off shopping on the site, citing reports of poor employee working conditions. New York Mayor Bill de Blasio (D) discouraged shopping at Amazon, telling reporters it's “the day when Amazon tries to outgun every small business.” Prime Day is “a perfect day not to shop Amazon” and instead “keep it local” and “buy from your neighborhood stores,” De Blasio said. An Amazon spokesperson emailed: “Over half of all products purchased on Amazon are sold by small and medium businesses, including more than 40,000 businesses in the State of New York who sold more than 600 million products in one year. That’s why we invest billions in logistics, tools, services, programs, and our teams to help our small and medium business selling partners succeed.” EMarketer estimated Prime Day, which runs through Tuesday, will generate $12 billion in sales worldwide.
Consumers who stepped up their use of e-commerce deliveries for “critical goods” and to protect themselves during the pandemic plan to continue doing so with greater frequency after the health crisis, an Omnitracs survey found. The transportation intelligence software company hired Dynata to canvass 1,000 U.S. adults, finding 47% had groceries delivered for the first time during COVID-19. “Speed is the name of the game when it comes to deliveries,” evidenced by growth of one- and two-day shipping during the pandemic, “and consumers want to accelerate them even more,” the survey found. Three in 10 would be willing to pay more for same-day shipping, while a fifth either would pay more for real-time shipping updates or to join a loyalty program that offered shipping discounts.
Issue a Further NPRM on expanding the base of entities that pay FCC regulatory fees to include “Big Tech and other unlicensed spectrum users” so that those companies pay “their fair share of all of the Commission’s activities from which they directly benefit,” said NAB in calls this week with aides to FCC acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel, aides to Commissioner Geoffrey Starks and Office of Managing Director staff, per a filing posted Thursday in docket 21-190. Spare broadcasters reg fee increases related to the Broadband Data Act, “which neither regulates nor benefits broadcasters,” said NAB. “Allocate Broadband Costs across only those core bureaus that are doing the relevant work and whose regulatees benefit from the Commission’s broadband mapping.”
Consumer tech trends intensified during the pandemic, found an American Institute of CPAs study of 2,100 adults mid-December by Harris Poll. Thirty-one percent say their online shopping activity “increased significantly” since the start of COVID-19, per results released Wednesday. Half increased their consumption of video streaming services and 33% made more frequent use of third-party food delivery apps.
Women compose 41% of 2021 supply chain workers, up from 39% in 2020, a Gartner survey found. Every “leadership level” saw an increase, except the executive level, falling to 15% from 17%. “Contrary to other industries, supply chain’s mission-criticality during the COVID-19 pandemic has meant that many sectors did not reduce their workforce, but rather continued to hire and even faced talent shortages,” said analyst Dana Stiffler Wednesday. “This resulted in many women not only standing their ground in supply chain organizations but increasing their representation.”
Continental and Elektrobit announced Tuesday the first in-vehicle integration of Alexa Custom Assistant, enabling automakers to create their own branded intelligent assistants using Alexa AI. The debut is at the virtual Alexa Live 2021 developer event July 21 at 1:15 p.m. EDT. The implementation combines Alexa Custom Assistant with Continental’s Cockpit computer and EB's software and integration services. The automotive cockpit is becoming more complex with more displays, cameras, sensors and advanced features, said Jens Brandt, head-human machine interface, Continental North America. Consumers expect a seamless experience, and user experience is becoming a top differentiator for carmakers, he said. “Advances in AI are making voice experiences in the car more natural, conversational and user-friendly,” said Ned Curic, vice president-Alexa Auto. Carmakers can join the session live by registering here.