Rebecca Day

Amazon’s pharmacy programs are a “large opportunity for adoption” among the e-commerce giant’s 70 million U.S. Prime households, Cowen analyst John Blackledge wrote investors Tuesday. Amazon announced two pharmacy offerings Tuesday: Amazon Pharmacy, a store on Amazon where customers can complete an entire pharmacy transaction on a PC or mobile device via the Amazon app, and a Prime prescription discount benefit that offers members up to 80% off generic and 40% off brand name medications when paying without insurance. The offerings complete a multiyear effort by Amazon after it bought PillPack in September 2018, said Blackledge, which gave Amazon license to deliver prescriptions in all 50 states. Customers can add insurance information and ask their prescriber to send new or existing prescriptions directly to Amazon Pharmacy for fulfillment. Prime membership includes free, two-day delivery on Amazon Pharmacy orders. A September Cowen survey showed 42% of respondents regularly take prescription medication for an ongoing condition. Of those, 69% pick up the medication at a pharmacy, 29% receive it by mail and 13% pick up at a hospital pharmacy. Prime members were slightly less likely to use mail-order pharmacy services at 27% vs. 32% for non-Prime households.

Sound United said Tuesday that speakers in its Definitive Technology and Polk Audio lines have been Imax-Enhanced-certified. Definitive’s Demand D17, D15 and D5c and the Polk Audio Legend L800, L600 and L400 speakers are the first home theater speakers to receive the Imax certification, the company emailed. Sound United’s intent in joining the certification program was “to reproduce the signature IMAX sound without compromise,” said Matt Lyons, Polk vice president-engineering. “IMAX defined a specific set of frequency ranges to be used for testing, which we then ultimately measured against speaker performance.” The company’s Denon and Marantz brands previously received Imax Enhanced certification for select AV receivers. Imax and DTS worked with Hollywood sound mixers and consulted with industry experts, including engineering teams at Polk Audio and Definitive Technology, to design the loudspeaker certification process, Sound United said. The speaker certification "completes the ecosystem of IMAX Enhanced products including content, devices and loudspeakers, all calibrated to offer the level of performance IMAX demands,” Lyons said. The company didn’t say whether speakers from Bowers & Wilkins, which Sound United acquired last month (see 2010160060), would be submitted for Imax Enhanced certification.

With COVID-19 accelerating a retail shift to online and digital sales, Walmart saw a 79% spike in e-commerce net sales growth in Q3, said CEO Doug McMillon in a Tuesday investor call. “We’re convinced that most of the behavior change will persist beyond the pandemic.” He cited the retailer’s omnichannel retail strategy allowing consumers to shop the way they’re most comfortable: via in store, curbside pickup or online delivery.

Roku is the only major video streaming service without HBO Max, after HBO's announcement Monday the service will be available on Amazon Fire TV devices starting Tuesday. Roku customers had access to HBO Go before the shutdown of that app in July but can’t get HBO through the Roku platform due to ongoing talks (see 2007010059). “We’re in discussions with Roku,” emailed a spokesperson at HBO parent AT&T Monday. Roku didn’t comment. The $14.99 monthly HBO Max service begins rolling out on Amazon Fire TV streaming players, Fire TV Edition smart TVs and Fire tablets Tuesday. Existing HBO subscribers through Amazon’s Prime Video channels will be able to log into the HBO Max app with their Amazon credentials “at no additional cost,” said HBO. The HBO app on Fire TV and Fire tablets will automatically update to become the HBO Max app, and customers will be able to log in using existing HBO credentials. HBO Max customers, regardless of how they subscribe to the platform, can access all of HBO Max via supported Fire TV and Fire tablet devices using existing provider credentials, it said. The agreement includes integration with Alexa for voice search. HBO Max content is also integrated into universal search on Fire TV: Its content will appear in searches such as “Alexa, find dramas” or “Alexa, find Game of Thrones,” for example. Since HBO Max launched in May, 8.6 million customers activated subscriptions.

Nearly half of U.S. consumers would be fine if they never shopped in a brick-and-mortar store again, said a Monday report from Jungle Scout, a platform for selling on Amazon.com. About three-quarters of consumers believe the majority of shopping will happen online in the future, it said, based on an Oct. 1-2 survey of 1,002 consumers.

Consumer e-commerce spending swung north after a post-election falloff, emailed Adobe Friday, analyzing more than a trillion visits to U.S. retail sites Nov. 4-10. The analytics firm reaffirmed its holiday forecast, predicting $189 billion, a 33% year-on-year increase, will be spent online Nov. 1-Dec. 31, pending another round of stimulus checks or physical store shutdowns due to COVID-19. Consumers spent $1.9 billion the day after the election, down 12% vs. the three prior days. Online spending also reached $1.9 billion on Nov. 5, a 2% dip year on year. An upward trend began Nov. 6, with spending reaching $2.1 billion, up 9% year on year, and $1.9 billion on Nov. 7, an 11% rise. Spending reached $2.5 billion, up 26%, Nov. 8, $2.4 billion, up 24%, Nov. 9, and $2.5 billion Nov. 10, up 27%. Ten days into the holiday season, $21.7 billion has been spent online, Adobe said. Despite the spending slowdown after the election, enough big shopping days remain “to make up lost ground,” said Adobe Digital Insights Director Taylor Schreiner. Though discounting began earlier this year, Thanksgiving, Black Friday and Cyber Monday “have great staying power and are expected to set new records, with growth in the 35 to 40 percent range," Schreiner said.

Apple’s “embracing the ability” to capture, share and edit content in Dolby Vision in iPhone 12 models shows how “the Dolby experience can apply far beyond even those more traditional forms of content,” said CEO Kevin Yeaman on a Thursday investor call. Dolby Vision continues to be a growth area for the company, said the executive, estimating the HDR technology is in 15%-20% of 4K TVs. In the last fiscal year, 4K models were just over 50% of the TV market for Dolby, he said.

Sonos jumped into the premium music streaming business Thursday, announcing an ad-free, high-definition streaming tier of Sonos Radio. The $7.99 monthly service will have more exclusive content than the free version of Sonos Radio, delivered in lossless 16-bit/44.1 kHz FLAC, said the company. The HD FLAC coded is supported by all Sonos speakers, a spokesperson emailed. He downplayed concerns that streaming service partners would perceive the Sonos subscription as competition, saying the offering “is complementary to these services.” Sonos has a “commitment to choice,” he said, noting customers can choose from more than 100 streaming services on Sonos, including the free, ad-supported Sonos Radio and premium Sonos Radio HD. On whether Sonos plans to offer track and playlist capability in the future, bundle hardware and streaming services, or make Sonos Radio HD available to other audio hardware companies, the spokesperson said the company is “always exploring ways to bring new listening experiences to customers.” It has "nothing to share on these items." Exclusive content is part of the Sonos Radio HD service, including artist-curated stations that go in-depth with interviews, “obsessions, inspirations, and nostalgic tracks.” The first to go on air is Songteller Radio, hosted and curated by Dolly Parton; her first show is available on Sonos Radio HD and on Mixcloud. New artist-curated stations will drop regularly, Sonos said, including five new ones early next year. The service plans “deeper exploration” into genres and music scenes by curators and expert DJs, including Nashville Now and Americana Ramble, jazz performances, R&B and soul. Also on tap are soundtracks for cooking, working and relaxing, along with audio promoting mindfulness, productivity and relaxation. Sonos is offering a free one-month trial.

Xperi raised revenue guidance for the rest of the year, after its settlement with Comcast of longstanding litigation over its TiVo patent portfolio. The companies signed a 15-year licensing program for pay TV, dating to the expiration of their prior agreement, that supports Xperi’s core pay-TV licensing program revenue through early 2031, said CEO Jon Kirchner on a Q3 investor call Monday.

TV shoppers have plenty of deals to choose from this week as Black Friday sales kick into high gear at big-box retailers. Black Friday starts Wednesday at Conn’s HomePlus, headlined by big-screen TVs from LG, Konka, Samsung, Sony and TCL, said a virtual flyer. “Doorbusters” are available in store and online, while supplies last, led by a 65-inch 4K TV (no brand shown) for $249; a 70-inch LG set at $499; and a 65-inch TCL Roku TV for $429. An 82-inch Samsung model is $700 off to $1,299; 50- and 55-inch Konka Android TVs are $279 and $319. Beginning at 7 p.m. EST Wednesday, a TCL 55-inch Roku TV hits Walmart.com at $148, and a 50-inch model under the retailer’s Onn brand is $128. At Best Buy, Black Friday deals available Monday in select quantities included a 70-inch Samsung 6 series smart Tizen TV, $220 off to $529, and a Samsung 7 series 43-inch, shaved by $12 to $267.