Verizon Business To Buy BlueJeans, Taking Aim At Zoom And Teams

The acquisition of BlueJeans Network will give Verizon a secure, cloud video platform to better compete against the competition and attract new customers working from home and in the telehealth space, the carrier said.

Verizon Business on Thursday announced that it will acquire BlueJeans Network, a cloud-based videoconferencing provider to better compete during the COVID-19 coronavirus-related teleworking surge.

BlueJeans Networks' enterprise-focused video and event platform will join Verizon's unified communications portfolio. The deal will help the carrier compete in the video space with the likes of Microsoft Teams and Zoom Video Communications, which has recently experienced some security and data privacy issues.

Verizon did not disclose financial terms of the acquisition of privately-held BlueJeans, but a report published Thursday from The Wall Street Journal said that the carrier will pay less than $500 million for the cloud video provider.

[Related: 7 Free Collaboration Software And Videoconferencing Tools For Working Remotely]

BlueJeans offers a simple, but encrypted video platform and has about 15,000 customers. Verizon said in a statement that it plans to use the service to build new relationships in the telehealth space, as well as bring in new distance education and remote working users.

The deal combines the BlueJeans platform with Verizon's global network, according to the Basking Ridge, N.J.-based carrier.

In an online post, BlueJeans CEO Quentin Gallivan and co-founders Krish Ramakrishnan and Alagu Periyannan said that the deal will allow the company “to accelerate product development to innovate secure and immersive collaboration experiences for our customers. In addition, we will be able to leverage the R&D of both companies to create compelling innovations to enhance our offering in use cases like telemedicine, distance learning and field service.”

Verizon Business CEO Tami Erwin said in a statement that “as the way we work continues to change, it is absolutely critical for businesses and public sector customers to have access to a comprehensive suite of offerings that are enterprise ready, secure, frictionless and that integrate with existing tools. Collaboration and communications have become top of the agenda for businesses of all sizes and in all sectors in recent months. We are excited to combine the power of BlueJeans’ video platform with Verizon Business’ connectivity networks, platforms and solutions to meet our customers’ needs.”

Mountain View, Calif.-based BlueJeans, which was founded in 2009, has raised $175 million in private funding. According to Crunchbase, the company has between 5001-1,000 employees.