MacRumors.com

After launching their movie download service in February, Wal-Mart has quietly shut down the service after HP decided to discontinue the download service that powered it:

HP spokesman Hector Marinez said the company decided to discontinue its video download-only merchant store services because the market for paid video downloads did not perform "as expected." He noted that the Internet video business remains uncertain and is changing rapidly.

Wal-Mart's entry into the movie and TV download business was described as a "game changer" due to partnerships with all the major Hollywood movie studios. Wal-Mart's movies, however, were only offered in Windows Media format, which is not compatible with Apple's iPods.

This news comes amidst rumors that Apple was planning on expanding its online movie offerings to include rentals.