Microsoft Teams has tried for years to implement voice into its offering. While Microsoft is incredible at delivering an unparalleled user interface and experience, they don’t do as good a job of delivering a robust, feature-rich voice platform. Realizing this, Microsoft has recently introduced Direct Routing which allows third party carriers/providers to interface to the Teams ecosystem and provide the underlying transit for voice.
You no longer need to be 100% reliant on Microsoft for your UCaaS solution. 8×8, Ring Central, Call Tower, Intrado, and Call2Teams are just a few of the providers that offer the carrier services to your Teams experience. Your end user won’t experience any difference and there is no change in user experience when using Direct Routing.
Microsoft does offer voice directly with no third party involved, but there are a number of deficiencies and inadequacies with their solution: Confusing pricing plans, lack of true 9-1-1, no call recording, lack of international, lack of true support (you can’t call them), lack of advanced features, no contact center, no operator interface, etc.
Also, licensing with Microsoft is not straightforward, and Business Voice comes with a number of a la carte fees, including a phone system license, audio conferencing, and domestic and international calling plans.
Packet Fusion understands the Teams ecosystem and can guide you to the right solution. If you want to be one hundred percent in the cloud with Teams, we can show you the best options. If you have a premise Mitel Connect system and want to interface with the Teams client, we can show you how.
As CEO of Packet Fusion, Matt sets the tone and vision for our company and our customers. His 20+ years in telephony gives him a deep understanding of unified communications and collaboration technology. He is an engaging presenter and has a knack for breaking down the often over complicated VoIP technologies into plain and simple English. Outside of PFI, Matt’s happy place is on the golf course or on a bike ride with his daughters.