Verizon makes a move into videoconferencing, Jeff Bezos discusses a plan to test Amazon employees for COVID-19 and Apple is reportedly working on new over-ear headphones.\u00a0Here\u2019s your Daily Crunch for April 16, 2020.<\/p>\n
1. Verizon is buying b2b videoconferencing firm BlueJeans<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n TechCrunch\u2019s parent company is buying veteran videoconferencing platform BlueJeans Network \u2014 shelling out less than $500 million on the acquisition, according to the Wall Street Journal<\/a>. (A Verizon spokeswoman confirmed that the price-tag is sub-$500 million but did not provide a more exact figure.)<\/p>\n \u201cCustomers will benefit from a BlueJeans enterprise-grade video experience on Verizon\u2019s high-performance global networks,\u201d the company said in a statement. \u201cIn addition, the platform will be deeply integrated into Verizon\u2019s 5G product roadmap, providing secure and real-time engagement solutions for high growth areas such as telemedicine, distance learning and field service work.\u201d<\/p>\n 2. Bezos details Amazon\u2019s COVID-19 testing plans in shareholder letter<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Jeff Bezos dropped Amazon\u2019s annual shareholder letter today, which includes more information on the Amazon-built testing labs that were announced last week. Bezos said the company is considering \u201cregular testing of all Amazonians, including those showing no symptoms.\u201d<\/p>\n 3. Apple said to be working on modular, high-end, noise-cancelling over-ear headphones<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Bloomberg reports<\/a>\u00a0that Apple is developing its own competitors to popular over-ear noise-cancelling headphones like those made by Bose and Sony,\u00a0but with similar technology to that used in the AirPod and AirPod Pro lines.<\/p>\n 4. Unicorn layoffs keep piling up as the economy gets worse<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Yesterday, news broke that a trio of well-known, heavily-backed unicorns \u2014 Carta, Zume and Opendoor \u2014 were cutting staff.<\/p>\n 5. Punitive liquidation preferences return to VC \u2014 don\u2019t do it<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n VC Pascal Levensohn says that several of his current portfolio companies have recently proposed \u201cemergency bridge\u201d convertible note financings of between $5 million and $15 million, each featuring a painful feature for non-participants. (Extra Crunch membership required.)<\/p>\n 6. DoD Inspector General report finds everything was basically hunky-dory with JEDI cloud contract bid<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n While controversy has dogged the $10 billion, decade-long JEDI contract since its earliest days, a report by the Department of Defense\u2019s Inspector General\u2019s Office concluded that the contract procurement process was fair and legal.<\/p>\n 7. Google Play adds a \u2018Teacher Approved\u2019 section to its app store<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n All apps found in this section are vetted by a panel of reviewers, including more than 200 teachers across the U.S., and meet Google\u2019s existing requirements (around government regulation and advertising) for its \u201cDesigned for Families\u201d program.<\/p>\n The Daily Crunch is TechCrunch\u2019s roundup of our biggest and most important stories. If you\u2019d like to get this delivered to your inbox every day at around 9am Pacific, you can subscribe here<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n