Verizon Sunsetting BlueJeans Video-Conferencing App
Verizon has announced that it will be discontinuing its suite of BlueJeans video-conferencing products, three years after acquiring the app. The decision comes as a result of changes in the market landscape, with Zoom dominating the COVID-19 video-conferencing boom.
Market Landscape Shift
In an email to users, Verizon explained that it made the difficult decision to sunset BlueJeans due to the increasing popularity of competitors like Zoom and Google Hangouts. Despite its initial success during the pandemic, even Zoom’s trading value has decreased since October 2020.
Founders’ Departure
BlueJeans was founded in 2011 by Alagu Periyannan and Krish Ramakrishnan. However, both co-founders left shortly after Verizon’s acquisition. The first features to be discontinued from BlueJeans will be its basic and free trial tiers, effective August 31. Other users can continue using the service until at least December 2023.
Confusing Promotion
Although the announcement has been made, the BlueJeans website still promotes the app with the slogan, “Nothing fits better than BlueJeans. Meet for as long as you want. Forever.”
