Sharjah24 - Reuters: Zoom Video Communications Inc has agreed to buy cloud software provider Five9 Inc in an all-stock deal worth about $14.7 billion to target business clients looking to boost customer engagement, it said on Sunday.

The teleconferencing services provider has become a household name and investor favorite in the year since the coronavirus pandemic, as businesses and schools adopted its services to hold virtual classes, office meets and socialise.

The San Jose, California-based company is now shifting focus to its two-year-old cloud-calling product Zoom Phone and conference-hosting product Zoom Rooms as bigger players Facebook and Alphabet's Google amp up their video products.

"The acquisition is expected to help enhance Zoom’s presence with enterprise customers and allow it to accelerate its long-term growth opportunity by adding the $24-billion contact center market," Zoom said in a statement.