Walmart To Buy TV Maker Vizio for $2.3bn; TikTok Under European Commission Investigation; Greenwashing Legal Cases On The Rise

On today’s ExchangeWire digest: Walmart To Buy TV Maker Vizio for $2.3bn; TikTok Under European Commission Investigation; Legal Cases Over Greenwashing On The Rise 

Retail giant Walmart is set to buy TV maker Vizio for $2.3bn (£1.8bn) in a move to grow its ad business. The acquisition will bring Vizio’s advertising solutions business together with Walmart’s reach and capabilities. Vizio’s SmartCast Operating System currently services free ad-supported content on its TVs, with 18 million active accounts. The aim of the move is reportedly to help the retailer compete against rival Amazon in the advertising arena. 

In the social media landscape, TikTok is under the European Commission’s scrutiny for a potential breach of the Digital Services Act (DSA). The EU is formally investigating the video platform for issues relating to the protection of minors, advertising transparency, data access for researchers, and risk management for its addictive design and harmful content. Confirmed breaches of the DSA can result in fines of up to 6% of global annual turnover. 

Looking to the past, there has been an unprecedented increase in allegations of greenwashing which have materialised in legal action over the past few years. Cases rose from 9 in 2020 to 26 in 2022, reports an analysis by Deloitte. The increase has been dramatic since 2015, which saw no cases. 

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