Where Zoom is on it, Five9 will soon be on it. The popular video conferencing provider is taking over the cloud contact center in a share transaction worth around 14.7 billion US dollars. The goal: create the customer engagement platform of the future.
Boom, boom, boom, I want you in my Zoom. I wonder if a variation of the ’90s hit was scurrying through the minds of Zoom executives when they drew up the acquisition agreement.
Either way, “boom” is the appropriate keyword. In recent months, Zoom increased its acquaintance enormously. With the Corona pandemic, more and more people are using video conferencing. There’s no better or easier way to combine professional and private meetings with contact restrictions.
The development raises the prospect of a billion-dollar acquisition. Zoom and Five9 look set to become a family.
Zoom-Five9 family: what makes it tick?
Corporate synergies are popular. But they cost a lot of money. After growing sales more than 320 percent in 2020, Zoom is in a shopping mood. While signatures are still missing, the acquisition of Five9 already seems certain.
In the B2C sector, the video service has established itself as a functional and diverse communication platform. With the acquisition of Five9, Zoom wants to optimize the business line to corporate customers.
In detail, the deal is intended to improve the in-house feature “Zoom Phone”. This is how Zoom CEO Eric S. Yuan puts it on the official blog:
This acquisition complements the growing popularity of our Zoom Phone offering and positions us to accelerate Zoom’s growth and play an even stronger role in shaping the digital future by bringing enterprises and their customers closer together.
“Even more joy and value”
Mergers aren’t new for Yuan, but the Five9 deal ranks Zoom in the billion-dollar sector for the first time.
“We are constantly looking for ways to improve our platform, and the addition of Five9 is a natural extension that will bring even more joy and value to our customers,” the CEO says.
It’s clear that such an acquisition won’t happen overnight. According to Yuan, both Five9 shareholders and regulators still need to approve.
The plan calls for Rowan Trollope, previously Five9’s chief executive, to remain in place and continue to manage operations under the Zoom banner. Early in 2022, it is said, the deal could come to a final close.
Zoom takes the next big step
After the growth spurt is before the market expansion. Zoom is one of the big winners of the Corona crisis – from a business perspective. Logically, the curve will level off at some point. However, the service does not want to rest on its current high level.
Instead of aiming even higher, the first step will be to expand. This can be achieved by expanding the B2B area. More corporate customers through Five9’s call center software? At least Zoom is familiar with this – there have already been partnerships between the providers in the past.
Will the hybrid work model stay?
The deal also highlights Zoom’s concerns. Has the home office become established, or are most employers aiming for a return to the traditional work model with an office presence? How open are companies to a hybrid model? And what influence does politics have?
In addition, the competition is not sleeping. According to a report by Tagesschau, Zoom is ahead together with Cisco. But global players like Microsoft and Google are also moving into the video conferencing market.
Eric Yuan knows that his company has profited from an extreme situation. The only question is: Is this a trend or a change? Zoom is preparing for the time after Corona with Five9.
