Wal-Mart abandons online movie download less than year from launch

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has closed an online movie download service it launched less than a year ago. The retreat for Wal-Mart, which accounts for about 40 percent of all DVD sales, follows the company’s 2005 decision to abandoned efforts to build an online DVD rental service. The world’s largest retailer instead turned its rental service over to Netflix Inc. Wal-Mart still operates a music download service and continues to sell CDs and DVDs at retail stores and over the Internet for shipping by mail. A message on Wal-Mart’s video download Web site said the store closed Dec. 21. The Web site said customers who already have bought movies could continue to watch them. In a statement, Wal-Mart spokeswoman Amy Coll