It’s clear to see that Microsoft’s Cloud services are in a nice position. With almost 300 million Office 365 subscribers, phenomenal growth in Azure, and over 145 million daily active users on Microsoft Teams, they have built a huge platform that will be in every conversation about workplace integration for the next five years.
One of the enticing effects of owning a platform like Microsoft Teams is that it is already priced into the Office 365 subscription, a compelling argument for adoption, in a sense already bought and paid for by the business consumer with the Microsoft User license. Along with the vast number of users and a wealth of add-ons to the platform (file sharing, calendar, meetings, etc.), there are many opportunities for Microsoft to further monetize the Teams solution.
Micah Singer, Managing Director of TeamMate Technology believes that, with the addition of Operator Connect, now is an interesting moment to consider whether Microsoft is being equitable in their relationships with telco operators.
“There is no question that Microsoft has taken steps with the introduction of Direct Routing and now with the introduction of Operator Connect to make it easier to integrate Teams to PSTN.
“These tools have, and will continue to, attract Operators to partner with Microsoft and promote Microsoft Teams.”
Singer said that, although the theory behind Direct Routing and Operator Connect paints a benevolent picture of Microsoft’s vision for telephony partnership on the Teams platform, the reality is that by partnering with the Seattle giant, telco operators are paying an exorbitant toll.
“The good news for business customers is Microsoft only charges $8 for their version of the corporate PBX which includes Direct Routing. The bad news is that even if you want to combine Microsoft Teams and your existing PBX or Trunk they still charge $8. It is the operator and the business customer who must absorb this significant add-on cost.”
Although marketed as a free platform, Microsoft offer packages to businesses for domestic and international calling minutes, PBX features and audioconferencing, much in the same way as other telco operators, that can cost a small business of 10 employees up to $3,000 a year. On top of the usage-based costs, Microsoft announced last year that it would be charging for call recording and contact centre APIs as well as other ‘advanced features.’
Singer added that, although Operator Connect, like Direct Routing, appears to be an embrace of the operators, telcos will have to factor Teams interoperation as an expense that can run as high as 30 percent (if it is like Direct Routing in that regard).
