Verizon to 'sunset' Blue Jeans vidconf platform

Verizon has decided to nonstop its BlueJeans video collaboration level riding disconnected into nan sunset, arsenic it were.

The US telco acquired BlueJeans successful April 2020 – a clip erstwhile nan $500 cardinal value tag looked for illustration a bully woody arsenic overmuch of nan world started to activity from location while COVID-19's first battle connected humanity commenced.

"The operation of BlueJeans' world people endeavor video collaboration level and trusted marque pinch Verizon Business's adjacent procreation separator computing invention will present highly differentiated and compelling solutions to our associated customers," BlueJeans CEO Quentin Gallivan told The Register astatine nan time.

Just complete 3 years later, Verizon Business told america "changing marketplace conditions successful a post-pandemic landscape" mean BlueJeans will beryllium "sunset."

The sun comes up aft each sunset – but BlueJeans is not coming back. Verizon Business told america it is "refocusing its efforts connected different cardinal priorities" but didn't elaborate.

The telco offered beardown clues astir those priorities connected its Q1 2023 net call, erstwhile discussing nan assignment of Kyle Malady arsenic CEO of nan business unit. Investors were told [PDF] "His attraction is clear: thrust sustainable maturation successful mobility and present connected nan gross maturation opportunities wrong fixed wireless, 5G backstage wireless and mobile separator compute solutions."

BlueJeans is nary of those things.

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It's not difficult to conjecture what Verizon Business intends erstwhile it says "changing marketplace conditions successful a post-pandemic landscape" are nan logic for BlueJeans unravelling.

Vidchat networks aren't inexpensive to tally and BlueJeans faced plentifulness of title from nan likes of Cisco's WebEx and Google's WorkSpaces. During nan pandemic, Microsoft Teams came captured tens of millions of users pinch a very keenly priced bundled offering.

And of course, Zoom became a byword for this benignant of collaboration – truthful overmuch truthful that nan word "Zoom fatigue" gained rate to picture nan arena of boredom and vexation pinch online meetings.

Businesses person picked up connected Zoom fatigue – and nan alteration successful spontaneous collaboration it engenders – and responded by insisting their unit return to beingness offices. And erstwhile a worker is successful nan office, they’re little apt to request a video chat.

Beyond those secular trends, Verizon Business conscionable appears to person been little than willing successful BlueJeans: nan work didn’t complaint a mention connected either nan Q1 aliases Q2 2023 net calls. Nor was collaboration deemed worthy of discussion.

But a "cost ratio program" pinch a target of uncovering $2 cardinal to $3 cardinal of yearly savings by 2025 was discussed.

9to5Google has reported a missive sent by BlueJeans to its customers that states "BlueJeans Basic and free proceedings offerings will beryllium discontinued effective August 31, 2023." It's unclear erstwhile paid users of nan work will person to determine whether their migration plans will spot them zoom to Zoom, squad up pinch Teams, aliases prime different alternatives that don't person names suggesting gentle puns indicating an volition to go a customer. Waving for WebEx doesn't work. ®