The collaboration lets Unity developers integrate Walmart’s commerce application programming interfaces directly into their games and apps.
Walmart launched an “immersive commerce” partnership with 3D technology firm Unity. The collaboration lets Unity developers integrate Walmart’s commerce application programming interfaces (APIs) directly into their games and apps, which in turn lets creators sell physical items in real-time 3D (RT3D) across more than 20 platforms.
The partnership unlocks new ways for developers and creators “to connect customers’ virtual and physical lifestyles and establish new monetisation channels in games and experiences. It will further combine Walmart’s retail footprint with the 1.1 million developer Unity community.
Tom Kang, general manager for metaverse commerce at Walmart said, “We have an opportunity to connect the physical and digital realms in a way that only Walmart can, meeting our customers and members with authentic experiences where they already are.”
“By opening up Walmart’s commerce APIs to the Unity development community, we’re empowering developers to offer a new mechanism to further drive user engagement while making it easy and convenient for players to complete a transaction for physical products without leaving the game, virtual world or app,” Tom added.
Walmart has spent the last year testing commerce in online worlds, with three of these experiences made with Unity and integrating the retailer’s commerce APIs.