Verizon Closes Acquisition Deal With BlueJeans Network In A Month

Verizon Communications Inc. VZ has closed the acquisition deal with BlueJeans Networks in just a month.

What Happened

Last month, Verizon had entered into a definitive agreement to purchase BlueJeans, a provider of enterprise-grade video conferencing services.

In a joint message, BlueJean’s CEO Quentin Gallivan and co-founders, Krish Ramakrishnan and Alagu Periyannan, said, “We have all learned during this pandemic, video conferencing is a powerful medium for connecting people so they can collaborate and work productively.” They added, “By combining BlueJeans’ innovations in video with Verizon’s innovations in 4G, 5G and Mobile Edge Computing, we expect to be able to open up new use cases and expand our ability to serve customers in new and exciting ways.”

Why It Matters

The deal was valued at $500 million. BlueJeans raised $175 million since its launch, nearly ten years ago. 

BlueJeans rivals Zoom Video Communications Inc. ZM, a video conferencing platform that has seen increasing popularity during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic but has also faced criticism for its security issues.

Verizon said that BlueJeans’ products complement Verizon’s own business solutions, and will be “deeply integrated into Verizon's current and future 5G product roadmap.”

Price Action

Verizon shares traded 0.14% higher at $55.80 in the after-hours session on Monday. The shares had closed the regular session 1.85% higher at $55.72.

Image Credit: Courtesy of BlueJeans.