Bartels questioned the wisdom of introducing a bargain ISP service at this point in the tech slump, noting that other "experiments to offer free or low-cost Internet service have been largely unsuccessful." The reporter quoted a Gartner analyst who "questioned the buying power of those consumers that Walmart.com is aiming to reach." A Wal-Mart spokesman responded with this spectacularly mixed metaphor, "We can't back off on growth. The ball's on our shoulders."

Wsj.com's Melinda Patterson Grenier compared the planned Wal-Mart Connect service in detail with its rival Kmart's bluelight.com, which has offered three-tier Internet service since December 1999. By some odd coincidence, this is the same month that saw the announcement of the Wal-Mart-AOL deal. Grenier raised more questions about Wal-Mart's business model by pointing out that bluelight.com had recently changed its terms of use to charge users who are not buying anything from the site. Wal-Mart has no plans for such a tie-in.

SatireWire gets the last word on Wal-Mart Connect. Here's how the site's brief story sets the scene for the retailing giant's announcement: "Emerging from the deep, isolated cavern where its executives apparently have been hibernating for the past two years, Wal-Mart Friday proudly announced ..." Boy, it's bright out here.