Microsoft Teams is a persistent chat-based collaboration platform complete with document sharing, online meetings, and many more extremely useful features for business communications.
Microsoft Teams features:
Teams and channels. Teams are made up of channels, which are conversation boards between teammates.
Conversations within channels and teams. All team members can view and add to different conversations in the General channel and can use an @ function to invite other members to different conversations.
A chat function. The basic chat function is commonly found within most collaboration apps and can take place between teams, groups, and individuals.
Document storage in SharePoint. Every team who uses Microsoft Teams will have a site in SharePoint Online, which will contain a default document library folder. All files shared across all conversations will automatically save to this folder. Permissions and security options can also be customized for sensitive information.
Online video calling and screen sharing. Enjoy seamless and fast video calls to employees within your business or clients outside your business. A good video call feature is great to have on a collaboration platform. One can also enjoy simple and fast desktop sharing for technical assistance and multi-user real-time collaboration.
Online meetings. This feature can help enhance your communications, company-wide meetings, and even training with an online meetings function that can host up to 10,000 users. Online meetings can include anyone outside or inside a business. This feature also includes a scheduling aid, a note-taking app, file uploading, and in-meeting chat messaging.
Audio conferencing. With audio conferencing, anyone can join an online meeting via phone. With a dial-in number that spans hundreds of cities, even users that are on the go can participate with no internet required.
Telephone Integration. Of particular interest is the ability to provide “dial-tone” allow organisations to use Teams as a PBX system. This is achieved in Azure by integrating Skype for Business online with Microsoft Teams. This integration is called Direct Routing.
What you need for Telephony Licensing
| Small business | Enterprise | Education | Government | |
| Base plan | Add On for Direct Routing |
| Microsoft Business Basic / Standard / Premium | Microsoft 365 Business Voice without Calling Plan |
| Microsoft/Office 365 Enterprise E1 / E3 / F3 / A1 / A3 | Phone System |
| Microsoft / Office 365 Enterprise E5 | No Add-on required |
You can find complete licensing information at:
Microsoft Teams Add On Licenses