Walmart reveals it's planning an Amazon Prime Day counterattack with thousands of deals

AP

Walmart is launching a counterattack against Amazon Prime Day.

• Walmart is offering thousands of deals to counter Amazon Prime Day the company told Business Insider.
• Amazon launched Prime Day in 2015, and it's now one of the company's biggest shopping event of the year, behind Cyber Monday. The 48-hour event will be held on July 15 and 16 this year.
• Walmart, Target, Macy's, and hundreds of other retailers offer discounts every year to rival Amazon's annual shopping event.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Walmart is hoping to steal some fire from Amazon Prime Day.

The retailer is planning to release thousands of "special buys" and "rollbacks" - which is Walmart's term for discounts - between July 14 and July 17, a Walmart spokeswoman told Business Insider. Deals will include discounts of more than $100 on items like the HP 15.6" HD Touch Display Laptop and the Dyson Multifloor Bagless Upright Vacuum, the company said.

Walmart's discounts will coincide with Amazon's fourth annual Prime Day, a 48-hour sale that will be held on July 15 and July 16.

Amazon launched Prime Day in 2015, and it's now one of the company's biggest shopping event of the year, behind Cyber Monday.

Read more: Walmart reveals it's tracking checkout theft with AI-powered cameras in 1,000 stores

This isn't the first time that Walmart has offered discounts to rival Amazon Prime Day. The company, along with hundreds of other retailers including Target, eBay, and Macy's, now offer discounts every year around the annual shopping event. Analysts have started referring to this widespread promotional activity as "Black Friday in July."

This year, Target is offering "deal days" - what it says will be its biggest sale of the summer - on July 15 and July 16 to rival Prime Day. EBay is offering discounts starting July 1, along with a "crash sale" featuring special discounts if Amazon's site crashes on Prime Day.

About 70% of consumers plan to shop Amazon during the July sales events, while 44% plan to shop Walmart, 40% plan to shop Target, and 24% plan to shop Best Buy, according to a survey by Bizaarevoice, a retail consulting firm.

Amazon Prime Day will last 48 hours this year, which is longer than ever before. This will turn up the competitive pressure on its rivals, according to Moody's vice president Charlie O'Shea.

"Amazon's announcement that its annual Prime Day promotion now requires 'pluralizing' as it will be two days this year, running July 15 and 16, following 2018's 36 hour 'day', will make an already acutely-competitive retail environment even tougher," O'Shea said in a recent note to clients. "Making this even tougher, Walmart and Target will react, further turning up the competitive heat."