Vizio told IPO investors that the money was in what happened on its TVs after people bought them. Its SmartCast software put streaming apps, free channels like WatchFree, and targeted ads in front of every viewer. Founder William Wang had started the Irvine, California company in 2002 to make home entertainment affordable for everyone. By March 2021, when it went public, Vizio sold Smart TVs and sound bars and pitched advertisers an audience drifting away from cable.

V, Inc. in Irvine

Wang incorporated the company in California in October 2002 as V, Inc. It began operating in January 2003 and took the name VIZIO in 2007. The first bet was plain: shoppers wanted big flat-screen TVs at friendly prices. The second bet came later with SmartCast, Vizio's own operating system. Every set sold became a small channel for streaming services and advertisers, which gave Vizio a platform business that grew beside the hardware.

Walmart Buys the Screen

Vizio priced its IPO at $21 a share in March 2021 and listed on the New York Stock Exchange as VZIO. The offering brought the company about $144 million, and Wang kept control through Class B shares. The stock later traded well below its offer price. In December 2024 Walmart completed its purchase of Vizio for $11.50 a share in cash, about $2.3 billion in all. Vizio's shares left the NYSE that month.

Cover: The Girl by the Window, Edvard Munch. Art Institute of Chicago, public domain. Chosen for a figure at a glowing window (the screen).