UCStatus Podcast

By Randy Chapman, Mark Vale & Shawn HarryNews Technology Tech News

UCStatus Podcast episodes

September 07UCStatus Podcast Episode 74: Recent Teams News
Hello Readers, I hope you’re well.
Welcome to Episode 74 of the UCStatus Podcast. This episode features me (@randychapman), Mark Vale (@markvale) and Shawn Harry (@shawnharry).
Another list of stuff from the Microsoft Teams Roadmap and the Message Centre from late July 2026 to 2nd week of September 2026. Here’s the list…
Roadmap
Additional health signals on MTR on Android
Expanded Pro Management Portal (PMP) health monitoring for Teams Rooms on Android by surfacing device health signals including storage health, Teams meeting app, calendar sync, secondary display health and network. When issues are detected, PMP will automatically generate actionable alerts and support ticket creation workflows, enabling IT administrators to proactively identify and triage room health issues before they impact meeting experiences.
GA date: October CY2026
Proximity Join support for attendees in Teams events from MTR on Windows and Android
Attendees can take advantage of proximity join with Teams Rooms on Windows and/or Android for fast, effortless connection to nearby room systems during Teams events, such as town halls, webinars, and structured meetings.
GA date: October CY2026
Teams Admin Centre – Single pane for monitoring & troubleshooting for meetings and calls across the org
Administrators can monitor meeting and call health across the organization, uncover recurring patterns, and proactively troubleshoot issues impacting users in both active and completed meetings and calls.
GA date: September CY2026
Use Copilot Chat after a call in Call Queues
After a recorded call is completed, use Copilot in the Queues app to quickly catch up on key details, uncover insights, and resolve customer issues faster without having to manually search through a transcript or listen back to a recording. Navigate to the unified call history in the Queues app, select the recorded call record, and launch the Copilot Chat sidecar from within the Recap tab. You can then ask Copilot to generate a summary or answer questions about specific details related to the call.
GA date: September CY2026
Facilitator can join Channel Meetings
Facilitator can now join meetings set up in Teams channels. Facilitator helps participants run more effective meetings through the ability to take live notes, manage the agenda, answer questions, and capture tasks.
GA date: September CY2026
Intelligent Recaps in Queues App
Spend less time catching up on call recordings to resolve customer issues faster. For recorded call queue calls, the Queues app now supports intelligent call recaps for recorded calls that includes AI-generated summary notes, key discussion points, and follow-up actions. Navigate to the call record in the Queues app and select the Recap tab to access.
GA date: September CY2026
Change the organizer of a meeting
Transfer ownership of a meeting or recurring meeting series to another person in your organization. The new organizer must accept the transfer before it is completed. This helps maintain continuity for long-running meetings while preserving the existing event for attendees. Available in Outlook for Windows and web and Teams calendar.
GA date: September CY2026
Breakout rooms support for Teams Rooms on Android
With breakout room support, Teams Rooms on Android can be added to a breakout room and moved in and out of the main room making it easy for breakout session coordination.
GA date: October CY2026
Coordinated meetings support for MTR on Android
Teams Rooms on Android now supports coordinated meetings, enabling paired Teams Rooms on Android devices and Android-based touch boards to work together in the same hybrid meeting experience. This feature enables coordinated join and leave, and collaboration across front-of-room displays and touch boards. This creates more immersive and flexible meeting spaces for both in-room and remote participants.
GA date: January CY2027
Hide the organizer name in the calendar on Teams Panel and MTRoA
Admins can now choose whether the organizer name will show up in the calendar view on Teams panels and MTR-Android. In Pro Management Portal, admins can toggle the “Show Organizer Name” setting ON or OFF. On the panel device, admins can toggle the “Show organizer names” setting ON or OFF. On the MTRA console device and All In One Display device, admins can toggle the “Show organizer names on calendar” setting ON or OFF. Based on the selection, the organizer name will or will not be shown on the calendar view on panel and MTRA devices. Available with Teams Rooms Pro and Shared Space licenses.
GA date: October CY2026
QR code protection in Teams Meetings
Microsoft Teams will provide additional protection for QR codes shared by external users in messages. Images containing QR codes from external senders will be obscured by default and require users to reveal them before viewing or scanning. This helps reduce the risk of phishing and fraud by encouraging more deliberate interaction with QR code content.
GA date: October CY2026
Message Centre
Transitioning Teams Android Device Management from Teams admin Center to the Teams Rooms Pro Management portal
Teams Android device management is transitioning from the Teams admin center to the Teams Rooms Pro Management portal by July 2026 (public cloud) and August-September 2026 (GCC environments). PMP will unify management for all Teams devices, with TAC device management deprecated by September 2026. Admins should prepare by reviewing updated guidance and updating documentation.
GA now
Migrate shared Teams devices to passwordless Entra resource accounts
Microsoft Teams is introducing a new migration experience in the Teams Rooms Pro Management portal to move shared device accounts to passwordless Microsoft Entra resource accounts. This improves security by using device-bound credentials. Admins must initiate migration, starting early August 2026, with recommended phased deployment and validation.
GA now
Teams shared display mode and peripheral detection for BYOD spaces
Microsoft Teams is introducing shared display mode and enhanced peripheral detection for BYOD meeting spaces to improve meeting join experience and privacy. Rollout begins late July 2026. Administrators gain new reporting and device health insights in Teams Pro Management portal, with options to opt out of data collection. Users can disable automatic meeting room mode.
Completed mid-August
Modernized Gallery view in Teams Rooms on Android
Microsoft Teams Rooms on Android will receive a modernized Gallery view in mid-August 2026, aligning it with Windows. Updates include consistent participant tile ratios, video prioritization, stable gallery behavior, and new admin controls. No action is required before rollout; admins can configure settings post-update.
Mid August for general
mid-September for GCC
Interpreter agent support in Teams Rooms on Android
Microsoft Teams Rooms on Android will support real-time Interpreter agent for up to nine languages, enabling multilingual meetings with voice simulation. Available late August 2026, it requires a Teams Rooms Pro license, includes 20 hours of interpretation monthly, and offers admin controls via Teams meeting policies. No action required.
Available late September
Human interpreter listening mode supported in Teams Rooms on Windows
Microsoft Teams Rooms on Windows with Teams Rooms Pro will support human interpreter listening mode starting July 2026, allowing participants to select and switch interpretation languages during meetings. The feature enhances multilingual collaboration, requires organizer enablement, and involves no admin action.
Available late August
Microsoft Teams Rooms on Android: room users can change the app language
Teams Rooms on Android will allow users to temporarily change the app language per session from the console, aligning with Windows experience. This feature rolls out from June to October 2026 with app version 2.12.0+, resets after restart, requires no admin action, and does not affect system settings.
Available late October
Enhanced IntelliFrame with AI data channel for intelligent cameras
Microsoft Teams is enhancing IntelliFrame for Teams Rooms on Windows with AI data channels on certified cameras, enabling faster speaker framing, participant recognition, and smoother views. Rolling out worldwide from mid-October to mid-November 2026, this feature is enabled by default and requires no admin action.
Available mid November
Recap app consolidates meeting recaps in one place
The Microsoft Teams Recap app, rolling out July–August 2026, centralizes meeting recordings, transcripts, and AI summaries for improved productivity. It offers filters, audio/video recaps, and access to past 30 days’ meetings. AI features require a Microsoft 365 Copilot license; the app is pre-installed but not pinned by default.
Available end of August
Enhanced bookable desk experience with Teams panel based desk devices
Microsoft Teams is enhancing the bookable desk experience on Teams panel-based devices like Logi Dock Flex, enabling users to view and reserve desks directly. Rollout starts early August 2026, requiring a Teams Shared Space license per device. No admin action is needed; users must connect their laptop to book desks.
Available late August
Digital signage support for Teams panels
Microsoft Teams will support digital signage on idle Teams panels starting early August 2026, configurable via the Teams Rooms Pro Management portal. This feature works with select third-party providers (Appspace, XOGO) and requires Teams Rooms Pro or Shared Spaces licenses, allowing tenant-wide or device-specific settings.
Available late August
Use multiple phone lines on Teams mobile
Microsoft Teams Phone will support managing multiple phone lines on the Teams mobile app starting late July 2026, completing by August end. Users can select lines for calls, return calls by line, and view unified call history. No action is required; admins may manage numbers post-rollout.
Available late August
New user setting to view incoming calls in a small window
Microsoft Teams will introduce a new default setting allowing users to view incoming calls in a small, resizable window to reduce disruptions. This feature will roll out from May 2025 to mid-September 2026 across all platforms, requiring no admin action but user notification is recommended.
Available mid September
Call Quality Dashboard Custom Detailed Reports
Call Quality Dashboard will get a refreshed interface with enhanced accessibility and features like dark mode. Public preview starts mid-August 2026; general availability begins early September 2026. No action is needed, and users can revert to the old experience during rollout.
Available late September
AI-powered notes for in-person meetings with Facilitator in Teams Rooms
Microsoft Teams is expanding AI-powered meeting notes with the Facilitator agent to Teams Rooms on Windows and Android, enabling real-time notes during in-person meetings. Notes are securely stored in tenant-owned SharePoint, accessible via meeting recap in Teams desktop. Rollout begins late October 2026, requiring Teams Rooms Pro licensing and specific tenant settings.
Available late October
Breakout rooms now supported in meetings with up to 1,000 attendees
Microsoft Teams now supports breakout rooms in meetings with up to 1,000 attendees, allowing up to 100 breakout rooms per meeting. This feature, enabled by default, removes the previous 300-attendee limit and will roll out from July to September 2026. No action is required.
Available late September
Enhanced issue detection in Teams Rooms on Windows and auto-remediation with Teams Rooms Pro Management
Teams Rooms on Windows with Teams Rooms Pro will have enhanced issue detection and automatic remediation during nightly reboots, reducing downtime. Unresolved issues generate support tickets in the Pro Management portal. This feature is enabled by default starting mid-May 2026, with admins able to adjust settings as needed.
Available late September
Local Pan-tilt-zoom (PTZ) controls for Microsoft Teams Rooms on Windows
This one has been in the Message Centre for over two years at this point.
Microsoft Teams Rooms on Windows will add native local Pan-Tilt-Zoom (PTZ) camera controls for compatible cameras, allowing users to adjust cameras directly from the room console. Rollout begins September 2026, with no action required. Administrators should inform users and update support materials accordingly.
Available mid October
Copilot Recap
Back by popular demand. Keep in mind that this was generated by AI and may not capture exactly what we said or the sentimenmt and context around it accurately.
Generated by AI. Make sure to check for accuracy.
Meeting Notes:
Teams Rooms Monitoring And Device Management: Randy reviewed expanded Teams Rooms telemetry, centralized call-quality monitoring, and the migration of Android device management into the Teams Rooms Pro Management Portal; Shawn and Mark highlighted gaps in vendor APIs and the continued fragmentation between portals.
Expanded Health Signals: Randy explained that additional health signals for Teams Rooms on Android include Teams application status, calendar synchronization, secondary displays, and network information. Shawn asked whether vendors can retrieve this telemetry through an API; Randy answered that they currently cannot and noted that the available data remains incomplete.
Peripheral Visibility Gaps: Randy gave external microphone pods as an example of missing telemetry: if a pod is disconnected, Teams Admin Center and the Pro Management Portal may still report that audio is present rather than identifying the disconnected component. Randy said Microsoft needs to expose more device or vendor API data before a genuine single-pane monitoring experience is available.
Portal Separation: Shawn questioned whether administrators will need to switch between the Pro Management Portal for device information and Teams Admin Center for call telemetry. Randy and Mark clarified that calls are associated with the signed-in user rather than the physical device, but the discussion concluded that the experience remains split across administrative tools.
Pro Portal Migration: Randy said Android device management is moving from Teams Admin Center to the Teams Rooms Pro Management Portal and that individual and bulk settings, update management, and ring management are available. Some functions, such as uploading user backdrops, were still pending.
Automated Remediation: Randy described enhanced issue detection and automatic remediation for Teams Rooms on Windows with Teams Rooms Pro. During nightly reboots, the service can address certain software issues, while unresolved problems can generate support tickets in the Pro Portal; it cannot physically reconnect removed USB cables or displays.
Passwordless Resource Accounts: Randy described Microsoft’s migration of Teams shared devices from ordinary user accounts to passwordless Entra resource accounts, with Shawn confirming that the process is managed through the Pro Portal.
Account Model Change: Randy explained that Teams Rooms, panels, phones, and other shared devices have historically used user accounts even though they are resources rather than people. Microsoft is migrating these accounts to resource accounts and allowing their passwords to be removed.
Provisioning Codes: The planned end state will allow administrators to provision a resource account in the back end and generate a code that an installer enters on the device to associate it with the account. Randy said this provisioning-code capability was not fully available yet and still required additional updates.
Administrative Controls: Randy said the migration and account controls are located in the Pro Management Portal, require appropriate role-based access control, and apply to shared devices rather than ordinary Teams policy administration.
BYOD Meeting Space Experience: Randy and Shawn discussed Teams’ improved BYOD meeting-space experience, including shared display mode, peripheral detection, licensing, and the continuing demand for rooms that support Teams, Zoom, Google, and other services.
Shared Display Mode: Randy described a mode for non-Teams rooms where a user connects a laptop or other device to a USB and display setup, then uses the room’s camera, microphone, speakers, and display. Administrative controls can automatically detect a BYOD space and present a split-screen experience with the meeting on the room display while chat and other applications remain on the user device.
Connectivity And Usability: Randy said a properly designed BYOD room can operate through a single cable using DisplayPort Alt Mode without requiring drivers. Users can connect compatible phones, tablets, Macs, Windows PCs, Linux systems, or Chrome OS devices, use the room peripherals, and disconnect when finished so the space returns to its idle state.
Licensing And Management: The enhanced BYOD experience provides health signals and management data in the Pro Portal but requires the applicable shared-device or shared-spaces license. Randy noted that Microsoft’s naming for these licenses has changed several times.
Mixed Deployment Models: Randy said organizations are deploying mixed environments: some use Teams Rooms for important or complex rooms and BYOD for booths and smaller spaces, while others deploy both Teams Rooms and BYOD across different room sizes. Shawn agreed that the appropriate choice depends on the use case and the organization’s mix of collaboration services.
Room Booking: Randy recommended giving BYOD spaces resource accounts and panels so they remain bookable and visible to users even when they are not Teams Rooms. They also recommended making joining straightforward; Shawn specifically preferred native Teams panels where appropriate.
AI Recaps Interpretation And Compliance: Randy, Mark, and Shawn reviewed Copilot capabilities for call queues, meeting facilitators, recaps, transcription, and interpretation, while emphasizing consent, data location, accuracy, and the need for proactive insights rather than merely storing recordings.
Call Queue Copilot: Randy described Copilot chat after call-queue calls, including call summaries and transcript queries. Mark said their environment still appeared to require a third-party call recorder, and Randy responded that the capability might still be rolling out; Mark planned to wait several more weeks.
Proactive Data Use: Mark questioned whether Microsoft’s growing collection of recordings, transcripts, and recaps is accompanied by tools that proactively identify issues. They said managers are unlikely to listen to recordings or read transcripts manually and instead need alerts when a significant event occurs.
Data Governance: Mark and Shawn said the main concern with third-party note-taking bots is not necessarily the meeting participant but the provider, storage location, and potential use of the data outside the organization. Randy noted that administrators can block external bots and recorders across meetings, with limited role-based override options.
Consent And Accuracy: Randy asked whether external callers must be told that a bot is transcribing a call. Mark answered that consent requirements would likely follow existing call-recording rules in jurisdictions where consent is required. They also noted that transcripts can lose context and that summaries should not automatically be treated as authoritative records for disputes or legal use.
Interpretation Features: Randy described real-time interpretation that can translate spoken language while preserving the speaker’s voice characteristics, supporting up to nine languages and 20 hours of interpretation per month with a Pro license. They said the feature is intended for multilingual collaboration and asked whether it could support town halls or events; Randy indicated that it likely applies beyond standard meetings, although the exact event support was not explicit.
Human Interpretation Mode: Randy explained that human interpreter listening mode for Teams Rooms on Windows and Android lets participants select or switch interpretation languages during a meeting. The organizer must enable the feature, while no separate administrator action is required.
Facilitator Expansion: Facilitator support is being extended to channel meetings and scheduled in-person Teams Rooms meetings. Randy said Facilitator will be able to take notes for a scheduled room meeting when invoked, with the in-person capability expected later in the year.
Coordinated Meetings And Room Enhancements: Randy highlighted several Teams Rooms improvements, particularly coordinated meetings on Android, breakout rooms, language controls, intelligent framing, and meeting privacy features, with Shawn and Mark discussing practical use cases and timing.
Android Coordinated Meetings: Randy explained that coordinated meetings allow a primary Teams Room and a second device, such as a touch display or another Teams Room, to join the same meeting through linked accounts and back-end configuration. The capability has existed on Windows but is planned for Teams Rooms on Android, enabling vendor touchboards from providers such as Logitech, Yealink, and Cisco to participate; the stated target was January 2027.
Breakout Room Scale: Teams meetings are being expanded to support up to 1,000 attendees and as many as 100 breakout rooms, removing the previous 300-attendee limit. Randy said the rollout was scheduled from July through September.
Room Language Selection: Starting with the relevant Teams Rooms on Android app version, users will be able to select a temporary interface language from within the Teams application. The selected language applies during the meeting and reverts to the default language afterward, unlike the permanent language configuration available on Windows.
Intelligent Framing: Randy described enhanced intelligent framing for certified cameras, including faster speaker framing, participant recognition, smoother views, and labels over individuals in group framing. The AI data-channel enhancement was expected in mid-November.
Meeting Privacy: Randy said Teams will obscure images containing QR codes sent by external users until the recipient explicitly reveals them, reducing the risk of scanning malicious or misleading codes. They also discussed a control to hide meeting subjects and organizer names on Teams panels and Android Teams Rooms to avoid exposing sensitive meeting information.
Voice Feature Adoption And Billing Constraints: Mark, Randy, and Shawn assessed multiple phone lines on Teams Mobile and concluded that adoption is likely limited by established user workarounds and operator billing models rather than by technical availability.
Multiple Phone Lines: Randy said multiple phone lines on Teams Mobile had moved from the roadmap into the Message Center and was expected around late August. Mark estimated that among approximately 50,000 Teams Phone users, the feature was currently used essentially zero times.
Operator Billing: Mark explained that many Operator Connect providers price service per user and per line, so assigning two numbers to one person can require an additional subscription even when the user’s minutes and usage do not increase. Supporting more flexible relationships between users, numbers, shared lines, and direct inward dialing would require providers to rework their billing and infrastructure.
Adoption Barrier: Mark said providers are unlikely to redesign systems unless a sufficiently large customer makes support a commercial requirement. The participants also noted that unassigned numbers, shared lines, and existing messaging applications can cover many of the same use cases, reducing demand for multiple mobile lines.
Incoming Call Window: Randy mentioned an upcoming Teams setting that displays incoming calls in a smaller window with additional controls rather than using a large call interface. The feature was expected around mid-September.
Call Quality Dashboard Usability: Randy announced a refreshed Call Quality Dashboard with accessibility improvements and dark mode, while Mark and Shawn argued that the underlying data remains difficult to interpret and often drives organizations toward third-party monitoring tools.
Dashboard Refresh: Randy said the Call Quality Dashboard would receive a refreshed interface, improved accessibility, and dark mode, with the update expected around mid-August.
Interpretation Difficulty: Mark explained that setting up CQD can be complex and that administrators must understand what its metrics mean before the charts provide actionable information. Shawn said the native graphs have historically been difficult to use, while Randy noted that third-party products often present the same data more effectively.
Operational Value: The participants said customers may request CQD for business continuity or service-level documentation but later discover that maintaining and interpreting it is labor-intensive. They also observed that many users now rely on messaging and alternative communication services, reducing the perceived urgency of diagnosing individual voice-call quality problems.
Teams Panel And Workplace Display Features: Randy covered digital signage and bookable-desk capabilities on Teams panels, while Shawn and Randy discussed practical uses, licensing, proximity behavior, and the potential energy cost of keeping displays active.
Bookable Desk Devices: Randy described Teams panel-based desk devices such as the Logitech Dock Flex and a Yealink device, which combine a docking station with a front-facing display. These devices integrate with Places in the back end and require a shared-device license for authentication.
Digital Signage: Digital signage is being extended to Teams panels, allowing organizations to display information such as in-meeting collateral, joining instructions, or other workplace content. Shawn considered the feature more useful in rooms than on every panel.
Power Management: Shawn asked whether local power-saving settings or proximity sensors could control panel activity. Randy said some panels can wake from sleep using proximity detection, but Teams behavior can be inconsistent, and it was not yet clear whether digital signage would override sleep settings.
Delayed Camera Controls: Randy revisited local pan-tilt-zoom controls for Teams Rooms on Windows, noting that the feature has repeatedly slipped and that the Android implementation currently relies on cropping rather than physically moving or optically zooming the camera.
Windows PTZ Timeline: Randy said local pan-tilt-zoom controls for Teams Rooms on Windows were listed for mid-October, but the feature has appeared in planning materials for roughly two years and has repeatedly been postponed. They expressed uncertainty that the latest date would be met.
Android Limitation: Randy explained that the existing Android capability is limited because it crops the static camera image rather than moving the camera or providing optical zoom. The group is waiting to see whether the Windows version delivers more complete camera control.
Follow-up tasks
Podcast Branding: Update the podcast branding and replace the outdated “UC status” label with a current name such as “AI status” or another agreed title. (Randy)
Copilot Notes: Review and verify Copilot-generated notes before copying them into the podcast blog post. (Randy)
Telemetry Integration: Request or identify an API that allows vendors to retrieve Teams Rooms Pro health telemetry, including detailed peripheral status such as disconnected microphone pods. (Mark)
Call Queue Copilot: Recheck whether Copilot chat, call summaries, and transcript queries are available in call queues without requiring third-party call recording, and follow up after the rollout completes. (Mark)
Meeting Recording Compliance: Confirm the consent, data-residency, and compliance requirements for using internal or third-party bots, recorders, transcripts, and recaps in calls and meetings. (The team)
Teams Rooms Management: Evaluate the migration of Teams on Android device management into the Teams Rooms Pro Management Portal and identify any remaining settings that still require another portal, including background-image configuration. (The team)
Passwordless Resource Accounts: Track the rollout of passwordless Entra resource accounts and provisioning-code sign-in for Teams shared devices, and validate the required RBAC configuration when available. (The team)
BYOD Room Deployment: Assess BYOD meeting-space requirements, including shared-display mode, peripheral detection, shared-space licensing, and room booking, before deploying or standardizing the experience. (The team)
Digital Signage Power Management: Verify whether Teams panel digital signage overrides sleep or power-saving settings and define an appropriate proximity- or inactivity-based policy. (The team)
Multiple Mobile Lines: Assess customer and operator demand, billing implications, and commercial feasibility before pursuing wider adoption of multiple phone lines on Teams Mobile. (Mark)
Call Quality Reporting: Determine whether the refreshed Call Quality Dashboard provides actionable troubleshooting data or whether a third-party reporting solution remains necessary. (The team)
It was a fun discussion as always. Thanks for listening! Catch you next time.
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55 min
July 24UCStatus Podcast Episode 73: Recent Teams News
Hello Readers, I hope you’re well.
Welcome to Episode 73 of the UCStatus Podcast. This episode features me (@randychapman), Mark Vale (@markvale) and Shawn Harry (@shawnharry).
A shorter one this time with a list of stuff from the Microsoft Teams Roadmap and the Message Centre, plus something special for the Pro Management Portal. Here’s the list…
Roadmap
Enhanced issue detection in Teams Rooms on Windows and auto-remediation with Teams Rooms Pro Management
MC1248392 | July 14 – Teams Rooms on Windows with Teams Rooms Pro will have enhanced issue detection and automatic remediation during nightly reboots, reducing downtime. Unresolved issues generate support tickets in the Pro Management portal. The rollout begins mid-May 2026 worldwide, with diagnostics enabled by default and optional admin controls. No action required.
Building‑level insights on the Teams Rooms Pro Management portal recommended actions page
MC1257308 | July 14 – Microsoft is adding building-level insights to the Teams Rooms Pro Management portal’s recommended actions page, highlighting buildings with high Teams Rooms usage and remaining BYOD rooms. Rolling out mid-June to end July 2026, this feature helps IT admins optimize room technology and improve user experience, enabled by default for eligible licenses.
Multilingual Recap available with translation button
After meeting recap is automatically generated in the translation language chosen during the meeting, users can continue to change the language of the meeting recap after its generated.
GA date: August CY2026
Modernized Gallery view in Teams Rooms on Android
The updated Gallery view in Teams Rooms on Android prioritizes video on the meeting stage, arranges participants in consistent aspect ratios, and minimizes movement of participant tiles on stage. Users can hide the room self-preview video and choose to see audio and video participants equally on stage, instead of prioritizing video participants. Admins can choose the default behavior using local device settings and the Pro Management portal.
GA date: July CY2026
Multi-line calling on Teams Mobile
Make and receive calls using multiple assigned phone numbers directly from your mobile device – choose the right line for every call, with unified call history and seamless switching across all your lines.
GA date: July CY2026
Teams Phone call transfer improvements
Microsoft Teams is improving the call transfer experience on desktop (Windows and Mac) with a streamlined workflow that makes transferring calls faster and more intuitive. These changes reduce the number of steps to initiate a transfer and introduce transfer suggestions to help users find the right transfer target more quickly.
GA date: June CY2026
Message Centre
New layout for sharing content in Teams events
Microsoft Teams is introducing an updated set of layout options for presenters using the “Manage what attendees see” experience in Teams events. This update includes a new Speaker focused layout, giving organizers the ability to prioritizes presenter videos alongside shared content. This improvement help deliver more engaging and polished events such as town halls and large broadcasts.
This message is associated with Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 564613.
Identify in-room participants with IntelliFrame people labels
We’re introducing IntelliFrame people labels in Microsoft Teams Rooms on Windows to improve meeting clarity and inclusivity for remote participants. When enabled, this feature identifies in-room participants by name and displays a contact card, helping remote attendees easily recognize speakers and follow conversations. This enhancement supports better hybrid meeting experiences by connecting in-room and remote participants more effectively, improving collaboration and productivity.
This message is associated with Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 566700.
Migrate shared Teams devices to passwordless Entra resource accounts
We’re introducing phase 1 of the passwordless Entra Resource Accounts modernization initiative for Microsoft Teams shared devices. This update adds a new account migration experience in the Teams Rooms Pro Management portal that enables admins to identify, schedule, and execute bulk migrations of existing room resource accounts to passwordless Microsoft Entra resource accounts.
Passwordless Entra resource accounts improve security by reducing reliance on stored usernames and passwords while helping increase sign in resilience through secure device-bound credentials. The migration process is initiated by an administrator and will not occur automatically without administrative approval.
This message is associated with Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 558853.
Pro Management Portal
New Online Room Configurator Beta
Management portal Convergence
Device management for Rooms, Panel and Phones (including SIP phones and devices) moving to PMP. This is now GA as of end of June. Still a phased approach
Phase 1 (Until May 2026)- Preparation and Early Guidance
Admin onboarding guidance available.
Ongoing updates on Android features in PMP and roadmap progress.
Phase 2 (End of June 2026)- Transition Begins <— we are here
Android device management capabilities start appearing in PMP.
Select device management workflows begin redirecting from TAC to PMP.
Continued feature rollout and enablement.
Phase 3 (July and Aug 2026)- Expanded Capability and Default Experience
Full management workflows available in PMP (July 2026).
TAC workflows increasingly redirected to PMP (Aug 2026).
Customer migration completed.
Formal deprecation notices issued.
Phase 4 (Sept 2026)- Decommissioning the overlapping Teams device management features in TAC
Remaining TAC device management workflows retired.
PMP becomes the primary management portal.
Copilot Recap
Back by popular demand. Keep in mind that this was generated by AI and may not capture exactly what we said or the sentimenmt and context around it accurately.
Generated by AI. Make sure to check for accuracy.
Meeting Notes:
Teams Room Pro Management Portal Enhancements: Randy and Shawn discussed recent updates to the Teams Room Pro Management Portal, including enhanced issue detection, auto-remediation, webhook integration, and building-level insights for device and room management.
Enhanced Issue Detection: Randy explained that the Pro Management Portal now uses telemetry to detect issues in Teams Rooms, such as screens going offline, and attempts auto-remediation before escalating unresolved issues to support tickets. Integration with ServiceNow and a new webhook feature allows for external notifications and automation.
Webhook and ServiceNow Integration: The portal supports ServiceNow (Snow) e-bonding and a new webhook feature, enabling integration with ITSM tools or custom agents for automated incident handling. Randy noted that webhook visibility may depend on tenant configuration and that it is not yet clear if the feature is generally available.
Alert Tuning and Notification Suppression: Shawn and Randy discussed the importance of tuning alert systems to avoid unnecessary notifications, such as those triggered by scheduled reboots or intentional device shutdowns, ensuring only actionable alerts reach support teams.
Building-Level Insights and Room Recommendations: The portal now provides building-level insights, identifying BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) rooms and recommending upgrades to full Teams Rooms for improved user experience. The system discovers devices based on usage patterns and offers a direct link to a purchasing portal for recommended upgrades.
BYOD Room Management and Reporting: Randy described how the portal can associate discovered devices with resource accounts and shared spaces licenses, enabling reporting, usage tracking, and device management for BYOD rooms. The team discussed the value of incremental upgrades, such as adding a Teams panel for scheduling and calendar visibility.
Teams Features and Roadmap Updates: Randy, Shawn, and Mark reviewed several Teams feature updates, including multilingual recap, modernized gallery view for Android, multi-line calling on Teams Mobile, and improvements to call transfer and event sharing.
Multilingual Recap: Randy highlighted the new translation button for meeting recaps, allowing users to generate summaries in multiple languages and styles, such as executive briefings or podcast formats, enhancing accessibility for non-English speakers.
Modernized Gallery View: Teams Rooms on Android now feature a modernized gallery view, aligning with the experience previously available on Windows, providing a consistent and improved visual interface for meetings.
Multi-Line Calling on Mobile: The team discussed the rollout of multi-line calling on Teams Mobile, supporting up to 10 lines per user, which was previously available on desk phones and is now available on mobile clients as of July.
Call Transfer Improvements: Randy and Shawn noted enhancements to call transfer functionality, making the process more intuitive and faster, with clearer UI elements such as dedicated transfer buttons on touchscreen phones and in the Teams client.
Event Sharing Panel Overhaul: The sharing panel in Teams events has been redesigned for greater intuitiveness, consolidating options for sharing screens or apps, though sharing a portion of the screen is still not natively supported.
Passwordless Entra Resource Accounts for Teams Devices: Randy introduced the migration of shared Teams devices to passwordless Entra resource accounts, detailing the process, benefits, and implications for device security and management.
Migration Process: The Pro Portal now allows administrators to migrate existing Teams device accounts to passwordless authentication, removing the need for traditional passwords and enhancing security.
Provisioning and OTP Enrollment: For Windows devices, one-time passwords (OTP) are used for provisioning, while Android devices require entry of the MAC address, device name, and location to generate an OTP for on-site installers, enabling secure and remote sign-in.
Security and Conditional Access: The passwordless approach simplifies security posture by eliminating password-based logins, supporting token-based authentication, and reducing the need for complex conditional access policies, though organizations may still layer additional controls as desired.
Device Management Implications: Devices can now be remotely signed in via the Pro Portal, and even devices offline for extended periods will refresh their tokens upon reconnecting, streamlining management and reducing administrative overhead.
Teams Pro Portal Device Management Transition: Randy explained the ongoing migration of device management from the Teams Admin Center to the Pro Portal, covering new features, phased rollout, and the impact on administrators.
Migration Timeline and Phases: The transition is occurring in four phases, with the current phase involving the migration of device management capabilities to the Pro Portal, formal deprecation notices for the Teams Admin Center, and full decommissioning of overlapping features planned for September.
Expanded Device Support: The Pro Portal now supports management of Teams Rooms, SIP devices, phones, and panels, with Android devices already included and expanded functionality for individual and bulk configuration.
Configuration Profiles and Provisioning: Administrators can import and assign configuration profiles in bulk, associate profiles with accounts, and pre-provision devices, though zero-touch provisioning is not yet fully implemented.
Voice and SBC Management: While endpoints are moving to the Pro Portal, session border controllers (SBCs) and related voice policies remain managed in the Teams Admin Center, leading to a split administrative experience for now.
Pro Portal Room Configurator and Vendor Limitations: Randy, Shawn, and Mark discussed the new online room configurator in the Pro Portal, its vendor-specific limitations, and implications for device selection and procurement.
Vendor-Specific Device Listings: The configurator is linked to a specific global reseller, so only devices sold by that reseller are listed, limiting the selection and excluding some certified devices and vendors.
Adoption and Use Cases: The configurator is off by default and may be more useful for small organizations without AV specialists, but its adoption is limited due to the vendor-specific approach and lack of a fully agnostic device list.
AI and Copilot Integration in Teams: The team reflected on the increasing integration of AI and Copilot features across Teams, including meeting facilitation, call handling, and device interaction, and discussed industry perspectives on AI’s role in voice communications.
Copilot Features in Teams: Copilot is now available on phones and in Teams Rooms, offering features such as meeting recap, voice agent assistance, and call queue handling, with further expansion into device and meeting facilitation.
Industry Discussion on AI and Voice: Mark raised the topic of AI agents communicating over voice channels, with the group debating the practicality and use cases, ultimately suggesting that direct data exchange or federation platforms may be more efficient than voice-based bot interactions.
Follow-up tasks:
Room Configurator Vendor Limitation: Investigate whether Microsoft plans to make the Pro Portal room configurator vendor-agnostic and address the current limitation to a single reseller. (Randy)
Pro Portal Adoption: Assess and report on the current adoption rate of the Pro Portal room configurator, especially among smaller organizations without AV specialists. (Randy)
It was a fun discussion as always. Thanks for listening! Catch you next time.
As always, we’d love to hear your thoughts. Leave a comment below.
You can listen in-line in this post, or if you prefer, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Podcasts, TuneIn or iHeartRadio. The links are below.
If you’ve enjoyed this or any other episodes of the UCStatus Podcast, why not take a second to subscribe, like and share.
We’d love to hear your comments and suggestions for future episodes so why not leave a comment.
39 min
April 02UCStatus Podcast Episode 72: Recent Teams News
Hello Readers, I hope you’re well.
Welcome to Episode 72 of the UCStatus Podcast. This episode features me (@randychapman), Mark Vale (@markvale) and Shawn Harry (@shawnharry).
Nothing special in this one. Just a cherrypicked list of stuff from the Microsoft Teams Roadmap and the Message Centre. Here’s the list…
Roadmap
Built-in AI Interpreter for Calls on Teams Phone Devices
With AI Interpreter, Teams Phone Devices provide real time language interpretation directly within the call experience. Users can participate naturally in multilingual conversations while the device interprets spoken audio, reducing language barriers and supporting clearer communication in everyday calling scenarios.
GA date: April CY2026
Admin setting for simpler meeting passcodes (numeric-only)
Tenant admins can enable a meeting policy setting that generates 8 digit numeric-only passcodes for meetings organized by selected users/groups. Because numeric-only passcodes increase the risk of unauthorized access, enabling the setting displays a warning and requires explicit confirmation.
GA date: March CY2026
Simplified Teams app bar to create a cleaner and more focused experience
We’ve simplified the app bar to help you focus on what matters. Apps are easier to scan in a cleaner View more apps list, the overflow menu is less cluttered, and you can choose to show or hide the app bar to create more space for your work.
GA date: April CY2026
Secure Reliable Transport (SRT) Support for Teams town halls
Microsoft Teams will soon support Secure Reliable Transport (SRT) streaming in Teams town halls. SRT is a network protocol designed to deliver high-quality, low-latency video across the public internet.
SRT for reliable streaming in challenging network conditions.
GA date: March CY2026
Book future meetings directly from Teams panels
You can now make an upcoming meeting reservation from a Teams panel by browsing the calendar on the device and choosing any open time slot through midnight the next day. Add a guest during booking streamlining ad-hoc scheduling and coordination. Available with Teams Rooms Pro and Shared Device licenses.
GA date: April CY2026
Flexible layout for meetings with resizable divider
Microsoft Teams will introduce a resizable divider in meetings allowing users to adjust and swap the space between shared content and video gallery, supporting spotlighted, pinned, and Speaker View. This feature is enabled by default and requires no admin action.
GA date: April CY2026
Context preservation in Microsoft Teams
Microsoft Teams will restore recent conversation and view state if users return within 30 minutes, preserving tabs, side panels, layout, and selected messages. Rollout begins early April 2026, enabled by default for all users, with no admin controls or required actions
GA date: April CY2026
External domains anomalies report
Microsoft Teams will roll out the External domains anomalies report by mid-April 2026, helping admins detect unusual external communication. Available in the Teams admin center, it highlights abnormal activity and offers a block option. Admins can enable alerts for proactive notifications; no action is needed to access the report.
GA date: April CY2026
Digital signage support for Teams panels
Digital signage can now be displayed on idle Teams panel devices, similar to digital signage support for Microsoft Teams Rooms front of room displays. Signage source and settings can be configured in the Pro Management portal. Available with Teams Rooms Pro or Shared space-licensed spaces.
GA date: May CY2026
Attendee capacity packs for Teams events
Attendee capacity packs provide increased capacity limits for Teams events. Organizers can scale event attendance beyond base limits while maintaining a consistent Teams events experience.
GA date: May CY2026
Preview date: April CY2026
Microsoft Teams: Honor Windows Do not disturb setting
Microsoft Teams integrates with the Do not disturb setting in Windows to help reduce interruptions. Teams notifications are paused when Do not disturb is turned on, and resume after it is turned off.
GA date: April CY2026
Video recap in Teams
Intelligent meeting recap will now include video-based recaps. Video recap creates narrated video highlights from recorded meetings, featuring key takeaways and short clips that showcase important moments.
GA date: April CY2026
Microsoft Teams: Spoken language detection is now automatic
Spoken language detection is now fully automatic. Teams will automatically detect each speaker’s spoken language and update it in real time as the conversation evolves. Manual spoken language selection will no longer be available. This applies to both live captions and transcripts when Interpreter is enabled or when multilingual speech recognition is turned on in meeting options, helping deliver more accurate language recognition and a more consistent multilingual meeting experience.
GA date: April CY2026
Run SMB admin tasks faster with Microsoft 365 Admin Agent in Microsoft Teams
SMB Admins can use Microsoft 365 Admin Agent in Microsoft Teams to complete common admin tasks and get guidance on critical setup actions. Admin Agent can add users and assign licenses on behalf of the admin, as well as provide guidance on key SMB related topics such as organisation setup, security settings, and password resets—without leaving the Teams interface.
GA date: May CY2026
Microsoft Teams: Account Switching for Native Mac Controls via Dock and Menu Bar
Users will now find controls for switching between the accounts and tenants that they are signed into making it easier to navigate on Mac.
GA date: April CY2026
Microsoft Teams: Identify bots joining your Teams meetings
During Teams meetings, if there is an external 3P bot trying to join the meeting, organizers will be able to see a clear representation of the bots while they wait in the lobby. Organizers will be required to explicitly and separately admit these bots into the meeting, if really required. This approach will ensure that no one inadvertently accepts the external bots into the meeting ensuring that the organizers have full control over the presence of these bots.
GA date: May CY2026
Microsoft Teams: Minimized meeting window enhancements
We’re improving the experience when the active meeting window is minimized. Users can now raise their hand and send reactions without restoring the full meeting window. They can also choose between two minimized views: an expanded view that shows up to 4 participant videos, or a compact view that does not display other participants’ video.
GA date: April CY2026
Catch up on conversations in Microsoft Teams mobile
Catch up in Teams mobile provides a unified view of all directed and followed conversations across chats, meeting chats, channels and threads. The mobile-optimized card view supports swipe actions, helping you quickly review and triage lists of important items.
GA date: April CY2026
Microsoft Teams: delete meeting generated content in recap
Meeting organizers can now easily delete meeting generated content including recording, transcript, AI summary, and notes through the new delete button in recap page. Shared files in the meeting won’t be deleted.
GA date: April CY2026
Microsoft Teams: One-time email passcodes for external presenters in Teams events
One-time email passcodes provide an easy way for tenant administrators and event organizers to verify anonymous, external presenters invited to their events. Anonymous external presenters will be shown with a “Verified” tag once completing the process. Based on admin settings, the event organizer will also have a set of options available to them that applies to all external presenters, providing the ability to control who is admitted to the meeting or allowing uninvited users with the link to be admitted from the lobby.
GA date: April CY2026
Private organizer and presenter chat for structured meetings and webinars on Teams Rooms on Windows
Teams Rooms on Windows now supports separate chats for event coordination and audience engagement in structured meetings and webinars. When a room joins as an organizer, co-organizer, or presenter, organizers and presenters – including external presenters – can communicate privately in the Event Group chat, while switching to a separate chat to engage attendees. This helps to improve backstage coordination, reduce in event friction, and deliver smoother, more professional live experiences. Available in Teams Rooms Pro–licensed rooms.
GA date: May CY2026
Message Centre
Microsoft Teams Rooms on Android: License-based management updates for DM-synced devices
Microsoft Teams Rooms on Android devices synced via Device Management will have license-based management updates starting March 2026. Admin portal features will align with assigned licenses (Basic, Standard, Pro), affecting management capabilities but not in-room meeting experience. Review license assignments to prepare.
Changes to Teams Events licensing
Starting early April 2026, advanced Teams events features will be included with Teams Enterprise licenses, supporting up to 3,000 attendees. New capacity packs enable larger events. Teams Shared Space licenses expand device management. Microsoft Places features broaden access. Teams Premium retains exclusive advanced capabilities. No immediate admin action required.
Live transcription in Teams Rooms on Android
Microsoft Teams Rooms on Android will gain live transcription with speaker attribution, timestamps, and optional translation, requiring a Teams Rooms Pro license. Rollout starts late April 2026. Transcription is enabled by default, with no action needed, supporting accessibility and hybrid collaboration.
Microsoft Teams Rooms on Windows: Native PTZ controls – delayed again
Microsoft Teams Rooms on Windows will support native PTZ camera controls in the Camera settings menu when Enhanced Framing is off. Rollout starts late September 2026 worldwide, with admin toggle enabled by default. No admin action is needed before rollout; user notification is recommended.
Identify external bots joining your Teams meetings
Microsoft Teams will detect and label external meeting assistant bots joining meetings, giving organizers control to approve, deny, or remove them. A new admin policy will manage bot handling, with detection enabled by default starting mid-May to mid-June 2026. This enhances security and compliance visibility.
Microsoft Teams: Manage multiple phone numbers within one Teams account
Microsoft Teams Phone will allow assigning up to 10 phone numbers per user within one account, enabling calls from multiple numbers on various devices. Rolling out April-May 2026, this feature is off by default and requires admin configuration and a Teams Phone license. No prior action needed.
Multi-line support for Teams phone devices
Teams Phone will support multi-line users, allowing admins to assign up to 10 phone numbers per user within one Teams account. Users can call from multiple numbers on desktop, mobile, and devices. Rollout begins mid-April 2026. The feature is off by default and requires admin configuration and a Teams Phone license.
Catch-up in Teams Mobile
Microsoft Teams mobile will introduce a new “Catch up” view in early 2026, summarizing @mentions, replies, and chats in a card-based layout with swipe actions for quick triage. It is enabled by default, requires no admin changes, and aims to help users manage important messages efficiently.
Introducing Video Recap for Microsoft Teams
Microsoft Teams will introduce AI-generated video recaps for recorded English meetings, available only to users with a Microsoft 365 Copilot license. These narrated highlights combine key takeaways and clips, require no admin changes, and will roll out from April to May 2026.
AI-powered live interpretation on Teams Phone devices
AI-powered live interpretation will be available on certified Microsoft Teams Phone devices for users with a Microsoft 365 Copilot license starting mid-May 2026. It supports real-time language interpretation during various call types, requires policy enablement, is off by default, and excludes pure PSTN group calls.
Microsoft Teams: Copilot PSTN audio announcements
Microsoft Teams now provides audio announcements to PSTN participants when Copilot processes their audio in Copilot Only mode. This rollout is complete worldwide except GCCH and DoD (late June 2026). No admin action is needed; users may hear notifications when Copilot starts or stops processing audio.
Microsoft Teams: Auto-detect spoken language in multilingual meetings
Microsoft Teams will auto-detect spoken languages in multilingual meetings, updating captions and transcripts in real time, removing manual language selection. This applies when Interpreter or multilingual speech recognition is enabled, supports 10 languages, and rolls out April 2026. No admin action is required.
One-time email passcodes for external presenters in Teams events
Microsoft Teams will introduce one-time email passcodes to verify anonymous external presenters in events, rolling out from April to June 2026. Tenant admins can enforce verification policies, allowing organizers to control external presenter access by requiring sign-in or passcodes, enhancing event security and flexibility.
Microsoft Teams: New experience when users minimize the meeting window
Microsoft Teams will introduce a new minimized meeting window experience allowing users to raise hands and send reactions without restoring the full window. Two minimized views—expanded (showing up to four videos) and compact—are available. The update rolls out April–May 2026 and requires no admin action.
Microsoft Teams: Retirement of legacy third‑party meeting and call control APIs
Microsoft Teams will retire its legacy third-party meeting and call control APIs on June 30, 2026, removing external hardware/app control of meeting functions in the desktop client. Native Teams controls and supported integration models remain unaffected. Organizations should review and notify users of this change.
Copilot Recap
Back by popular demand. Keep in mind that this was generated by AI and may not capture exactly what we said or the sentimenmt and context around it accurately.
Meeting notes:
Generated by AI. Make sure to check for accuracy.
Meeting notes:
Microsoft Teams Roadmap and Message Center Updates: Randy, Shawn, and Mark discussed a comprehensive list of new and upcoming Microsoft Teams features, focusing on both aspirational roadmap items and concrete Message Center updates, covering topics such as AI interpreters, UI changes, security enhancements, device management, and licensing changes.
Roadmap vs. Message Center: Randy explained the distinction between the Microsoft Teams roadmap, which lists aspirational features with no guaranteed timeline, and the Message Center, which announces features that are being rolled out with more concrete dates and updates.
AI Interpreter for Teams Phone Devices: The group discussed the introduction of a built-in AI interpreter for Teams phone devices, which provides real-time language interpretation within calls. Mark raised concerns about usability on small screens, and Randy clarified that spoken language interpretation is already available in Teams apps and rooms, including voice mimicry for translated speech.
Simplified Meeting Passcodes: Randy described a new admin setting allowing numeric-only meeting passcodes for Teams meetings, noting that while this reduces complexity, Microsoft does not recommend it for security reasons. Shawn and Mark recalled past issues with meeting security and discussed the importance of lobby controls.
UI and Experience Enhancements: Several UI improvements were highlighted, including a simplified Teams A bar, flexible meeting layouts with resizable dividers, context preservation for navigation, and a minimized meeting window experience. These changes aim to streamline user interactions and address longstanding usability concerns.
Security and Compliance Features: The team reviewed new security features such as external domain anomalies reports, enhanced bot identification and admission controls for meetings, and the ability to delete meeting-generated content for compliance (e.g., GDPR). They discussed the integration of these features with Defender and the importance of centralized management.
Device and Licensing Management: Updates to device management were covered, including license-based management for Teams Rooms on Android, migration to the Pro Portal for device configuration, and the renaming of shared device licenses to shared spaces licenses. Randy provided details on the rollout timeline and improvements in configuration profiles.
Teams Events and Capacity Packs: Randy explained changes to Teams events licensing, where premium licenses are no longer required for large meetings up to 3,000 attendees, but capacity packs are needed for larger events. The group discussed the implications for organizers and the introduction of a unified Events app within Teams.
Multi-Number and Multi-Line Support: The ability to assign up to 10 phone numbers per Teams user and support for multi-line Teams phone devices was discussed, with Mark and Shawn considering the impact on service provider billing models and potential use cases.
Retirement of Legacy APIs: The retirement of legacy third-party meeting and call control APIs was announced, affecting integrations such as Stream Deck, with Randy noting that keyboard shortcuts will remain available for most functions.
AI and Automation in Teams: The participants explored the expanding role of AI in Teams, including real-time interpretation, video and audio recaps, and compliance-related announcements, while also debating the risks and ethical considerations of AI-generated content and impersonation.
Real-Time Language Interpretation: Randy described how Teams now supports real-time spoken language interpretation, including voice mimicry, and automatic detection of spoken languages during meetings, reducing the need for manual language selection.
Video and Audio Recaps: The group discussed the new video recap feature, which generates summarized video snippets from recorded meetings, building on the existing audio recap functionality. Shawn suggested its use for creating vlogs or social media content, while Randy noted its potential for podcast recaps.
AI Impersonation and Deepfakes: Mark raised the topic of AI-driven video impersonation, speculating about future features where bots could join meetings as users. Randy clarified that such features are not currently available and expressed concerns about the loss of personal touch and potential misuse for impersonation or misinformation.
Compliance and Announcements: Randy explained that Teams now provides customizable audio and banner announcements for compliance when bots or copilot agents join calls, ensuring participants are informed and can consent to recording or AI involvement.
Teams Device and Room Management Enhancements: Randy and Shawn detailed improvements in Teams device and room management, including new features for Teams panels, digital signage, live transcription, and the migration of device management to the Pro Portal, with a focus on simplifying administration and enhancing user experience.
Teams Panel and Digital Signage: The ability to book future meetings directly from Teams panels was introduced, along with support for digital signage on panels, allowing organizations to display internal communications, emergency alerts, or marketing content outside meeting rooms.
Live Transcription and Speaker Attribution: Live transcription with speaker attribution and optional translation is now available in Teams Rooms on Android, rolling out in April and enabled by default for Pro license holders.
Device Management Migration: Device management for Teams Rooms on Android is transitioning to the Pro Portal starting in June, offering improved configuration options, bulk changes, and the ability to manage settings on a per-room basis.
PTZ Controls Delay: Native PTZ (pan-tilt-zoom) controls for Teams Rooms on Windows have been delayed multiple times, now expected in September 2026, with Randy noting that current implementations only offer digital zoom rather than mechanical camera control.
Security, Compliance, and Meeting Controls: The team discussed new security and compliance features in Teams, such as enhanced bot identification, external domain anomaly reporting, and improved controls for meeting content deletion and external presenter verification.
Bot Identification and Admission: Teams organizers can now see and explicitly admit or deny third-party bots waiting in the meeting lobby, reducing the risk of unauthorized data access or espionage. Mark and Shawn emphasized the importance of restricting bot access to those approved by the organizer’s company.
External Domain Anomalies Report: A new report helps admins detect unusual external communications and offers options to block suspicious domains, with Shawn suggesting integration with Defender for centralized security management.
Meeting Content Deletion: Teams now allows deletion of meeting-generated content, including recordings, transcripts, and AI summaries, supporting compliance requirements such as GDPR and user requests to be forgotten.
External Presenter Verification: One-time passcodes and captcha verification are being introduced for external presenters in Teams events, enhancing security for external participation.
Licensing and Service Model Changes: Randy, Mark, and Shawn reviewed significant changes to Teams licensing, including the removal of the premium license requirement for large events, the introduction of capacity packs, and the renaming of device licenses, with discussion on the impact for service providers and customers.
Teams Events Licensing Changes: Teams events (town halls and webinars) no longer require a premium license for up to 3,000 attendees, but capacity packs must be purchased for larger events, shifting the cost structure for organizers.
Unified Events App: A new Events app within Teams consolidates scheduling, discovery, and recap features for webinars and town halls, replacing the legacy Live Events platform.
Device License Renaming: The shared device license has been renamed to shared spaces license, reflecting its broader application to panels, phones, and other shared devices.
Impact on Service Providers: The introduction of multi-number support per user and device is expected to affect billing models for service providers, prompting discussion on how providers may adapt to these changes.
Follow-up tasks:
Teams Pro Portal Management Documentation: Paste a link to the article about managing Teams Rooms on Android devices in the Pro Portal into the meeting notes and send it to Shawn if he hasn’t seen it already. (Randy)
Transitioning Teams Android Device Management from Teams admin Center to the Teams Rooms Pro Management portal
Teams Android device management is moving from the Teams admin center to the Teams Rooms Pro Management portal between April and September 2026. PMP will unify management of all Teams devices with enhanced features.
There’s a Microsoft Docs post with all the detail
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoftteams/rooms/aboutunifieddevicemanagement-pmp1
It was a fun discussion as always. Thanks for listening! Catch you next time.
As always, we’d love to hear your thoughts. Leave a comment below.
You can listen in-line in this post, or if you prefer, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Podcasts, TuneIn or iHeartRadio. The links are below.
If you’ve enjoyed this or any other episodes of the UCStatus Podcast, why not take a second to subscribe, like and share.
We’d love to hear your comments and suggestions for future episodes so why not leave a comment.
56 min
February 06UCStatus Podcast Episode 71: Recent Teams News around ISE 2026
Hello Readers, I hope you’re well.
Welcome to Episode 71 of the UCStatus Podcast. This episode features me (@randychapman), Mark Vale (@markvale) and Shawn Harry (@shawnharry).
I’m sure you realised by now that we didn’t do an Ignite take-over because to be honest there wasn’t a lot to talk about surprisingly. We also haven’t done an ISE take-over for the same reason. Most of the news is dominated by AI, Agents, and Copilot. There’s just so much of that news that it pushes the normal Teams stuff to teh bottom of the pile.
That said, I still managed to find some “regular” Teams news in all the noise. Here’s the list…
Message Centre
Starting with breaking news
Transitioning Teams Android Device Management from Teams admin Center to the Teams Rooms Pro Management portal
Teams Android device management is moving from the Teams admin center to the Teams Rooms Pro Management portal between April and September 2026. PMP will unify management of all Teams devices with enhanced features.
What will happen:
Starting June 2026, Android device management capabilities, including inventory, updates, health monitoring, and settings will transition from TAC to PMP for the device types, Teams Rooms on Android, Teams phones, Teams panels
The following capabilities will be available and enhanced in PMP:
Device inventories for Android-based Teams Rooms, phones, and panels, including metadata and app information
Remote device actions (restart, log collection, sign-in/out, provisioning, and more)
Update management
Device settings management
Device health monitoring
SIP device management
PMP will become the primary portal for all Teams device management. By July 2026, overlapping TAC capabilities (updates, settings, restart, sign-in/out, log collection, provisioning) will begin redirecting to PMP.
Meeting notes now available for instant meetings
Microsoft Teams now supports Loop-powered meeting notes for instant meetings, enabling collaborative agendas, notes, and task creation synced across Teams and Loop app. Rollout begins February 2026, with notes accessible during and after meetings, integrated with Planner and To Do. Feature enabled by default; no admin action required.
Enhanced peripheral data in Pro Management portal reports for BYOD spaces
Microsoft Teams is adding peripheral health reporting in the Pro Management portal for BYOD rooms and desks, enabling admins to detect device issues proactively. Room reports need a Teams Shared Devices license; desk reports are in public preview. Rollout starts April 2026, improving support and meeting reliability.
Viva Engage communities in Teams
Create custom templates for immersive events in Microsoft Teams
Improvements to meeting threads in Microsoft Teams channels
Microsoft Teams will reduce automatic meeting updates in channel conversations starting January 2026, making threads cleaner with reply counts showing real user responses. Meeting details remain accessible in threads.
Microsoft Teams Copilot without transcription becomes default for meetings
conversation history now persists – Microsoft Teams Copilot will default to a mode without transcription for new meetings starting late March 2026, with conversation history persisting during meetings. Transcription must be manually enabled for post-meeting queries. Tenants with policies updated after June 2024 are unaffected; admins can adjust policies to retain current behavior.
Rule-based enablement of Microsoft 365 third-party apps in the Teams admin center
Starting mid-March 2026, admins can manage Microsoft 365 certified third-party apps in Teams via org-wide settings with rule-based controls for app availability. This feature enhances security by allowing customization based on permissions and publishers. The rollout is automatic, with the new control disabled by default.
Microsoft Teams frontline BYOD onboarding wizard
Microsoft is introducing a dynamic onboarding wizard for frontline workers using personal Android or iOS devices with Microsoft Teams. It supports MFA and adapts to security policies. Public preview starts late November 2025; general availability begins mid-March 2026
Branded meeting reactions in Teams Premium
Teams Premium will allow organizations to replace standard meeting reactions with custom branded visuals via customization policies. Admins upload assets and assign themes, while users select themes when scheduling meetings.
Choose your “Enter” key behavior in Teams Chat Settings
Microsoft Teams will add a per-user setting allowing users to choose if pressing Enter sends a message (default) or starts a new line (with Ctrl/Cmd + Enter to send). Shift + Enter always inserts a new line. This applies to Desktop and Web, rolling out February–March 2026, with no admin action needed.
New enrollment dashboard and data deletion controls in Teams Admin Center
A new voice and face enrollment dashboard with data deletion controls will roll out in Teams Admin Center from mid-March to late March 2026. Admins can view and permanently delete enrollment data, requiring users to re-enroll for AI features. No changes to default enrollment or policies.
Multiple phone number assignment to a single user on Teams Phone Devices
Multi line support allows a single Teams Phone Device to handle multiple phone numbers assigned to the same user account, enabling users to make and receive calls from any of their numbers without switching accounts or devices. This capability brings flexibility and efficiency to scenarios where individuals manage multiple roles, regions, or responsibilities.
GA date: April CY2026
Multiple camera switching in Teams Rooms on Windows as a receiver
Introducing new tool to migrate content from Slack to Microsoft Teams
Teams application update needed to enable Explicit Recording Consent feature on Teams Phone Devices
Microsoft Teams Phone Devices will require app version 1449/1.0.94.2025443703 to enable Explicit Recording Consent for 1:1 VoIP calls starting January 2026. Administrators must update devices before enabling this policy, which prompts participants for consent before recording or transcription begins.
Private chat for organizers and presenters in structured meetings, webinars, and town halls
New user setting to view incoming calls in a small window
Room use and people count data based on size and capacity on the Pro Management portal shared spaces insights page
Admins can block external users in Microsoft Teams from Defender Portal
Admins can now block external users in Microsoft Teams via the Tenant Allow/Block List in the Microsoft Defender portal, controlling access and communications. This feature, rolling out January 2026, supports up to 4,000 domains and 200 emails, with audit logging and no impact on existing Teams settings.
Upcoming improvements to the jump list experience on Windows
Microsoft Teams on Windows will update the jump list by mid-February 2026, adding meeting access, scheduling, and chat actions, while removing the “Quit” option.
Express voice enrollment in Microsoft Teams
Express voice enrollment in Microsoft Teams makes registering your voice profile quick and seamless. A voice profile enables features such as voice isolation, speaker recognition, identification in meeting rooms, improved transcripts, and enhanced meeting recaps and insights powered by Microsoft 365 Copilot.
IT admins will be able to customize recording and transcription notifications in Teams
Starting January 2026, IT admins can customize Teams recording and transcription notification messages and privacy links per meeting policy, aligning consent language with organizational needs. Custom messages have a 200-character limit, support explicit and implicit consent, and apply only when enabled. Default messages remain if no custom text is set.
Troubleshoot meetings and calls with automatic issue identification and recommendations in Teams admin center
Roadmap
New profile cards for buildings, rooms and desks
Buildings, rooms and desks that are added to the Places directory will have new profile cards, accessible from Copilot Chat and across other Microsoft 365 entry points.
GA date: June CY2026
New map-based room booking experience in Places Finder
We are enhancing the room booking experience in the new calendar experience across Outlook for Windows, Outlook for the web, and Teams by introducing a map view within Places Finder. This update replaces the existing side panel with a full screen, easier to use interface that helps people quickly find and book the right space.
GA date: August CY2026
Digital signage in Teams Rooms on Android
As with Teams Rooms on Windows, IT Admins can now set up Teams Rooms on Android to show dynamic signage content on the front-of-room display when the device is not in use for meetings or presentation. Configuration is available for tenant-wide and room-specific settings via the Teams Rooms Pro Management portal. The feature supports select third-party digital signage partners like Appspace and XOGO, and is included with Teams Rooms Pro.
GA date: March CY2026
Teams button on certified for Microsoft Teams personal peripheral devices one-click access to voice in Microsoft 365 Copilot within the Teams mobile app (iOS).
Now, you can connect your certified for Microsoft Teams personal Bluetooth device (such as your personal headset or earbuds) and with one press of the Teams button you can launch the Teams mobile app and invoke voice in Microsoft 365 Copilot within Teams. This feature eliminates the hassle of navigating menus on your mobile phone, giving you instant access to your personal AI assistant for quick conversational voice answers. This capability is initially available in iOS. Android and desktop client will be supported in a future release.
GA date: March CY2026
Ad-hoc room reservation from Teams Rooms on Windows and Teams Room on Android console
With Teams Rooms Touch consoles, you can quickly book a meeting room for immediate use, helping to avoid scheduling conflicts and ensure uninterrupted spontaneous meetings. Available in Teams Rooms Pro-licensed rooms.
GA date: March CY2026
Queues app historical reporting supports 45 days of data
Historical reporting within Queues app will now support 45 days of historical data. The report will default a 7-day range with ability to customize the reporting range with up to 45 days of history.
GA date: March CY2026
Call quality feedback surveys for Teams Rooms on Android
Users can now rate the quality of their calls and meetings and provide additional feedback on calling, video, and screen-sharing experiences to help organizations ensure consistent, high-quality experiences.
GA date: March CY2026
Brand Impersonation Protection for Teams Calling
Identify if an external user is impersonating a brand commonly targeted by phishing attacks, during their initial contact with an enterprise user via Teams calling.
GA date: February CY2026
Scheduling with Copilot chat in classic Outlook for Windows
Users can now schedule meetings directly from chat or by clicking “Schedule with Copilot” in the UI. Simply ask Copilot to schedule a meeting with colleagues, and it will find available times, book rooms, draft agendas, and send invites—all within the chat experience. This feature is available to users with a Microsoft 365 Copilot license.
GA date: March CY2026
Preview date: January CY2026
Meeting Notes now available for instant meetings
Teams meeting Notes, powered by Loop, are now available for instant calls and meetings, like those started from ‘Meet now’ and calls started from chat. Notes are Loop components in Teams meetings and chats that allow end users to co-create and collaborate on their meeting agenda, notes, and action items that can be co-authored and edited by everyone. Since Notes are Loop components, they stay in sync across all the places they have been shared. Once added, meeting notes can also be shared and edited in the Loop app in your web browser.
GA date: February CY2026
Prepare for meetings with Copilot in classic Outlook for Windows
With so many of us in back-to-back meetings, it can be a real struggle to stay on top of pre-reads, action items, and even what each meeting is about. Copilot quickly prepares you for meetings within minutes by bringing real-time insights and summarizing relevant context, tasks, documents, and other resources. You can also chat directly with Copilot to prepare more deeply, to ensure you’re ready to go. This feature is already available in the new Outlook for Windows, Web, Mac, and Mobile and is now being adding to classic Outlook for Windows. It is only available for users with a Microsoft 365 Copilot license.
GA date: March CY2026
Preview date: January CY2026
Other
We also chatted about
The end of the line for Teams Live Events
Today, we’re announcing the retirement of Microsoft Teams live events and the associated Microsoft Graph APIs used to create Teams live events. This change will go into effect June 30, 2026, as part of our ongoing effort to continue to modernize our event experiences and deliver a more powerful and flexible solution for large-scale communications.
While Teams live events will no longer be available to schedule after the retirement date, Microsoft will honor all live events already scheduled through February 28, 2027. Customers can continue to run those events as planned.
As we look ahead, we encourage customers to transition to newly-announced Teams events experience, which provides a centralized, end‑to‑end experience for digital and hybrid events.
Microsoft Teams events: A new unified experience makes it easier to discover, create, and manage events
Microsoft Teams is redesigning the Meet app to unify Events, streamlining creation, discovery, and management of webinars, town halls, and custom events. Rollout starts February 2026 (targeted) and April 2026 (general). Existing meetings remain unchanged; no admin action needed. Training updates are recommended.
Unified event creation flow for both webinars and town halls
Centralized event discovery and tracking
Simplified event management
New capabilities give event organizers more control and flexibility
Expanded access to events with new licensing
Events will no longer require Teams Premium licensing! Starting in April
Copilot Recap
Back by popular demand. Keep in mind that this was generated by AI and may not capture exactly what we said or the sentimenmt and context around it accurately.
Meeting notes:
Transition of Teams Android Device Management to Teams Pro Management Portal: Randy and Shawn discussed the transition of Teams Android device management from the Teams admin center to the Teams Pro management portal, highlighting new features such as device inventories, remote device actions, update management, health monitoring, and SIP device management, with the rollout starting in April and completing by September 2026.
Transition Timeline and Scope: Randy explained that the transition of Teams Android device management from the Teams admin center to the Teams Pro management portal will begin with a preview in April and is expected to be completed by September 2026, including GCC and other environments.
New Management Capabilities: The new portal will provide enhanced device inventories, metadata, app information, remote device actions such as restart, log collection, signing out, and provisioning, as well as update management and health monitoring for Teams Android devices.
SIP Device Management Integration: SIP device management will be included, allowing for unified management of SIP devices alongside other Teams devices, which Shawn noted as a step toward consolidating device management into a single portal.
API and Integration Requests: Shawn emphasized the need for an API to integrate third-party tools with the new portal, suggesting that unified provisioning and management would simplify administration, especially compared to other ecosystems like Cisco.
Configuration Profiles and Partial Config: Randy described improvements in configuration profiles, such as the ability to push updates automatically to assigned rooms and support for partial configuration, which allows local settings to remain untouched, benefiting international deployments.
BYOD and Meeting Room Trends: Randy and Shawn discussed the increasing prevalence of BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) in meeting spaces, the enhanced peripheral data program portal for BYOD spaces, and the evolving balance between dedicated Teams Rooms and BYOD setups, with Randy noting customer adoption patterns and technical considerations.
BYOD Adoption Patterns: Randy observed that while some customers are deploying BYOD at scale, most are adopting a hybrid approach where important rooms are dedicated Teams Rooms and smaller spaces or booths are BYOD, rather than moving entirely to BYOD.
User Experience Considerations: The team discussed the challenges of BYOD, such as the need for users to connect their own devices and potential disjointed experiences, but noted that some OEMs have simplified the process to make it nearly as seamless as dedicated solutions.
Enhanced Peripheral Data Program Portal: Randy mentioned the new portal for BYOD spaces, which provides information about connected screens and peripherals, supporting better management and insights for BYOD environments.
BYOD Onboarding Wizard for Frontline Workers: A dynamic onboarding wizard for frontline workers using personal Android or iOS devices within Teams was introduced, aiming to streamline the process for non-desk workers such as welders and builders.
AI, Copilot, and Compliance in Teams: Randy, Shawn, and Mark Vale discussed the growing integration of AI features such as Copilot and Facilitator in Teams, the introduction of new enrollment dashboards and data deletion controls for voice and face profiles, and ongoing concerns and requirements around privacy, compliance, and selective recording.
AI Features and Facilitator: Randy highlighted the increasing role of AI in Teams, including the Facilitator feature, which can use cameras for room management tasks and is integrated with the admin center for enhanced automation.
Voice and Face Enrollment Dashboard: A new dashboard in the Teams admin center allows users and admins to view and permanently delete voice and face enrollment data, addressing privacy and compliance requirements such as GDPR.
Privacy and Compliance Concerns: Shawn and Mark Vale discussed ongoing privacy concerns, especially in regulated industries like banking, and the importance of user control over biometric data, with Microsoft providing mechanisms for data deletion.
Selective Recording and Notification Customization: The team discussed the need for more granular recording controls, such as selective recording based on meeting participants or call types, and the ability to customize recording and transcription notifications, with a 200-character limit for custom messages.
AI Adoption and User Behavior: Mark Vale noted that while there are privacy concerns about AI, users often allow other platforms to use their data with less scrutiny, and organizations are leaving it to users to find use cases for Copilot rather than driving adoption centrally.
Teams Phone Enhancements and PBX Features: Randy, Mark Vale, and Shawn discussed new Teams Phone features, including support for multiple phone numbers per user, requests for outbound dial string validation and authorization codes, and the evolution of Teams as a PBX replacement with advanced call management capabilities.
Multiple Phone Numbers per User: Teams will soon support assigning multiple phone numbers to a single user, enabling users to make and receive calls from any assigned number without switching accounts or devices, with rollout expected in 2026.
Outbound Dial String Validation: Mark Vale requested a feature for auto attendants to validate outbound dial strings using authorization codes, which would allow organizations to control call permissions and costs more granularly, similar to legacy PBX systems.
PBX Feature Parity and Migration: The group reflected on Teams’ evolution toward full PBX functionality, including features like call pickup groups, per-user normalization rules, and the need for scalable, maintainable solutions for complex call routing and authorization.
Recording Consent and Compliance: Teams phone devices will require an updated app version to enable explicit recording consent for one-to-one VoIP calls, supporting compliance requirements for call recording notifications.
Teams Events, Webinars, and Meeting Features: Randy, Shawn, and Mark Vale reviewed updates to Teams events, including the rebranding of town halls and webinars as ‘events,’ the deprecation of Teams Live Events, improvements to meeting threads, and new features such as private chat for organizers and presenters.
Rebranding and Deprecation: Town halls and webinars in Teams will be rebranded as ‘events,’ and Teams Live Events will be phased out, consolidating large meeting features under the new events umbrella.
Private Chat for Organizers: A new feature allows organizers and presenters to have a private chat (green room) during structured meetings, webinars, and town halls, improving coordination during live events.
Meeting Thread Improvements: Teams will reduce automatic meeting updates in channel conversations, making threads cleaner and displaying real user responses, enhancing the meeting experience in channels.
Immersive Events and Custom Templates: Teams now supports custom templates for immersive events, leveraging VR-like experiences, though the group noted limited use cases in corporate environments and more potential in education or consumer contexts.
Teams Places, Desk Booking, and Licensing Changes: Randy, Mark Vale, and Shawn discussed the development of Teams Places features, including map-based room booking, build cards for rooms and desks, and recent licensing changes that remove the requirement for Teams Premium for certain Places features.
Map-Based Room and Desk Booking: Teams Places will support booking rooms and desks directly from a map interface, provided by mapping service partners, enhancing the user experience for workspace management.
Build Cards for Rooms and Desks: New build cards will provide detailed information about rooms, buildings, and desks, accessible from the Places directory and Copilot chat, supporting better resource management.
Licensing Changes for Places: Recent changes mean that Teams Premium is no longer required for desk booking and other Places features; instead, a shared device license per four desks is sufficient, reducing costs for organizations.
Customer Adoption and Feedback: The group noted limited customer interest in Places so far, with some organizations preferring existing solutions, but acknowledged that the new UI and licensing changes may drive future adoption.
Security, Compliance, and Admin Enhancements in Teams: Randy, Shawn, and Mark Vale covered new security and admin features in Teams, including the ability for admins to block external users via the Defender portal, enhanced reporting and analytics, and brand impersonation protection for Teams calling.
Blocking External Users in Defender: Admins can now block external users in Teams via the Microsoft Defender portal, using allow or block lists for up to 4000 domains and 200 emails, with auditing and logging support.
Brand Impersonation Protection: Teams calling now includes protection against brand impersonation, identifying external users who may be impersonating commonly targeted brands during initial contact, similar to email sender authentication standards.
Reporting and Analytics Enhancements: Historical reporting for Teams queues has been extended to 45 days, with the ability to export CSVs for further analysis, though there is still demand for longer retention and API access for compliance and analytics.
Jump List and Admin Center Improvements: The Teams app on Windows will receive updates to the jump list for easier access to controls, and the admin center will include new dashboards for face and voice enrollment data management.
Additional Teams Features and Quality of Life Updates: The group discussed a variety of smaller Teams updates, including multiple camera switching in Teams Rooms, a Slack-to-Teams migration tool, customizable recording notifications, and improvements to call quality feedback and device integration.
Multiple Camera Switching: Teams Rooms on Windows now support multi-camera view, allowing users to switch between up to four camera feeds during meetings, with controls available on the touch console.
Slack-to-Teams Migration Tool: Microsoft has released a first-party tool to migrate content from Slack to Teams, supplementing existing third-party solutions.
Customizable Recording Notifications: Admins can now customize recording and transcription notifications in Teams, with support for explicit and implicit consent and a 200-character message limit.
Device Integration and Peripheral Updates: Certified Teams headsets and peripherals can now use the Teams button to invoke Copilot, and digital signage is being added to Teams Rooms on Android.
Follow-up tasks:
Teams Device Management API: Request or investigate the availability of an API for Teams Pro Management Portal to enable third-party integration for device management. (Shawn)
Teams Premium Licensing for Places: Look up and confirm the recent announcement regarding Teams Premium licensing requirements for Places features and update the meeting notes accordingly. (Randy) – found it
It was a fun discussion as always. Thanks for listening! Catch you next time.
As always, we’d love to hear your thoughts. Leave a comment below.
You can listen in-line in this post, or if you prefer, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Podcasts, TuneIn or iHeartRadio. The links are below.
If you’ve enjoyed this or any other episodes of the UCStatus Podcast, why not take a second to subscribe, like and share.
We’d love to hear your comments and suggestions for future episodes so why not leave a comment.
58 min
November 07, 2025UCStatus Podcast Episode 70: All the Latest Teams News before Ignite 2025
Hello Readers, I hope you’re well.
Welcome to Episode 70 of the UCStatus Podcast. This episode features me (@randychapman), Mark Vale (@markvale) and Shawn Harry (@shawnharry).
Only about 3 1/2 weeks since the last episode. Happy days. Since Ignite is only a couple of weeks away we thought it might be good to do an episode of everything new since the last one and before all the annoucements of Ignite take over. Here’s the list…
Message Centre
Audio only recording now available in Teams – This new feature provides a valuable option for users by enhancing efficiency and accuracy in documenting meetings and calls. It alleviates concerns about facial information exposure when recording is necessary, offering a more privacy-conscious approach to recording meetings.
AI workflows powered by Microsoft 365 Copilot – AI Workflows in the Teams Workflows app use Microsoft 365 Copilot to automate tasks via scheduled prompts and templates, available to licensed users. Rolling out late 2025 to early 2026, the feature is off by default and requires enabling the Workflows app in Teams. Admin controls allow disabling it.
Microsoft Teams town halls: Full HD (1080p) video resolution coming to Teams Premium – Microsoft Teams Premium will support 1080p video resolution for town halls starting November 2025. IT admins must enable it via the TownhallMaxResolution policy. Network support and Ultra-Low Latency streaming are required. The feature enhances video quality for sharper broadcasts and is available across all Teams platforms.
Microsoft Teams: Introducing the Network Strength Indicator – a 3-bar system starting mid-December 2025. It helps identify poor connections, suggests bandwidth-saving actions, and shows others’ network status to improve meeting clarity. Rollout completes by mid-January 2026.
Microsoft Teams Rooms on Windows: Native PTZ controls delayed again to March 2026
Teams admin center: “What’s New” section coming between mid November and early december – It provides admins with tenant-specific updates, new controls, resources, and Targeted Release visibility. The feature is on by default, requires no setup, and helps admins stay informed and act quickly.
Microsoft Teams: Chat with anyone with an email address rolling out November
Microsoft Teams Rooms on Android: Recording and transcription controls (Teams Rooms Pro required)
Microsoft Teams Rooms: Front-of-room view control for Town Halls on Android – Microsoft Teams Rooms on Android will introduce an Adaptive Front-of-Room Experience for Town Halls, requiring a Teams Rooms Pro license. It offers a distraction-free attendee view and full presenter control, including backstage tools. Rollout begins December 2025.
Microsoft Teams Rooms: Room health signals in Teams Rooms on Windows – Teams Rooms on Windows with Pro licenses will display alert banners for critical room health issues on front-of-room and console displays starting February 2026. This feature, enabled by default in app version 5.5+, helps users quickly identify problems and maintain meeting continuity by prompting room changes if needed.
Consult and merge into a meeting or group call via Dual-Tone Multi-Frequency (DTMF) – Microsoft Teams will enable consulting and merging PSTN callers behind IVR or auto-attendants using DTMF tones into meetings starting January 2026. Users can navigate IVR via a new dialpad and merge external parties seamlessly. No admin action is needed; the feature is enabled by default.
Roadmap (everything new for Teams in the last month)
Microsoft Teams: New sharing panel in meetings – improved content discovery and ease of sharing – ROLLOUT START January 2026 – The sharing panel in today’s meetings is the default place for content discoverability and sharing. New sharing panel UI is crafted with intent of modernising and simplifying default tasks such as window sharing, but also for easier discovery of sharing options and more discoverable file sharing.
Microsoft Teams: Miracast support for Teams Rooms on Windows devices – ROLLOUT START January 2026 – In addition to Teams Cast and HDMI ingest; you are able to share wirelessly using Miracast with Teams Rooms on Windows devices including touch boards. Available in Teams Rooms Pro.
Microsoft Teams: Interpreter agent support in Teams rooms on Windows – ROLLOUT START December 2025 – The Interpreter agent acts as a translator in Microsoft Teams meetings, allowing participants to listen to the meeting in their chosen language with real-time translation so speaking different languages isn’t a barrier to effective understanding and collaboration. It’s now available in Teams Rooms on Windows licensed for Teams Rooms Pro.
Microsoft Teams: Restart your Town hall event – ROLLOUT START December 2025 – Teams town hall producers can now restart a live event while the event is active in order to address technical issues that might arise during the execution of an instance. Whether technical, network, or other issue, this feature enables those managing the event to quickly resolve problems for attendees. This feature is designed to prevent the need for scheduling entirely new events.
Other
Making Teams Updates Seamless with Smarter Delivery with Peer-to-Peer download and Scattered Rollouts
Copilot Recap
Back by popular demand. Keep in mind that this was generated by AI and may not capture exactly what we said or the sentimenmt and context around it accurately.
Teams features
Randy explained that audio-only recording is coming soon to Teams, offering a privacy-focused option for meeting documentation.
Randy introduced AI-powered workflows by Microsoft 365 Copilot, highlighting automation capabilities for tasks and templates in Teams.
AI workflow reliability
Mark discussed reliability challenges with AI-powered workflow tools, sharing examples of inconsistent performance and lack of error notifications.
Participants noted that while AI can automate workflow creation, users still need technical skills to review and adjust the results for accuracy.
Mark described challenges with AI-powered workflow tools, noting that fixing one part of a workflow can unintentionally break other working sections, and emphasized the need for clear context and understanding of variables.
Prompting best practices
Randy explained that AI tools like GPT may generate plausible but incorrect information when prompts are vague, highlighting the importance of precise prompting for accurate results.
Mark and Shawn discussed that while AI tools are useful for tasks like rewriting website content, users must still provide clear and detailed prompts to achieve the desired outcome.
AI prompting best practices
Participants discussed the importance of strong prompting skills for effective use of AI tools, noting that users must learn to write clear and detailed queries.
Randy explained that integrating prompting skills into school curriculums could be beneficial, suggesting a blend of IT and language education.
Teams feature updates
Randy announced that Teams Town Halls will support full HD 1080P resolution for large meetings with Teams Premium, but noted requirements for specific hardware, bandwidth, and policy settings.
Randy shared that Teams will introduce a network strength indicator with a three-bar system starting in mid-December to help identify poor connections and suggest bandwidth-saving actions.
Randy stated that Teams Rooms on Windows native PTZ camera control has been delayed again to March 2026, and discussed vendor responses and current limitations of the feature.
Randy shared that Microsoft Teams will soon allow users to chat with anyone using an email address, removing the need for federation and enabling external contacts to join via a browser-based Teams experience.
Participants discussed the benefits and potential concerns of the new Teams chat with external users, including easier communication and the need for appropriate guardrails.
Randy described the new Teams interpreter agent feature, which mimics a user’s voice in different languages to enable multilingual meetings.
Randy shared that Microsoft Teams will introduce peer-to-peer downloads and scattered rollouts for client updates, using ECDN technology to reduce bandwidth usage during updates.
Teams admin center updates
Randy explained that the Teams admin center will introduce a “what’s new” section in mid-November to early December, providing tenant-specific updates, new controls, and resources for admins.
Teams chat with external users
Participants discussed security concerns and potential data leakage risks related to the new Teams chat feature that allows initiating conversations with external email addresses.
Teams rooms feature updates
Randy explained that Teams rooms on Android will soon support manual recording and transcription controls, similar to the existing functionality on Windows.
Randy shared that Teams rooms on Android will gain enhanced producer controls for town halls and webinars, allowing presenters and participants to manage content directly from the touch console.
Randy explained that Teams Rooms on Android will soon offer enhanced producer controls for town halls and webinars, allowing presenters and participants to manage content directly from the touch console, with rollout beginning in December.
Randy shared that Teams Rooms on Windows will display alert banners for critical room health issues on both the front-of-room and console displays, with this feature enabled by default starting in February.
Randy stated that Teams Rooms on Windows touch boards will gain Miracast support, enabling wireless content sharing for devices without HDMI ingest, with the feature specifically for touch boards.
Teams calling and telephony
Randy announced that Microsoft will enable consulting and merging PSTN calls behind IVRs or auto attendants into meetings using DTMF tones, allowing users to merge external parties seamlessly without admin intervention, starting in January.
Teams meetings experience
Randy described improvements to the Teams meeting sharing panel, including a new floating interface with more intuitive controls for sharing screens, files, and whiteboards, rolling out in January.
Randy announced that Teams Town Hall producers can now restart a live event while it is active, addressing previous limitations where events could not be resumed after being stopped.
Participants discussed the history and evolution of large-scale meeting features in Teams, referencing earlier platforms like Skype Meeting Broadcast and Live Meeting.
It was a fun discussion as always. Thanks for listening! Catch you next time.
As always, we’d love to hear your thoughts. Leave a comment below.
You can listen in-line in this post, or if you prefer, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Podcasts, TuneIn or iHeartRadio. The links are below.
If you’ve enjoyed this or any other episodes of the UCStatus Podcast, why not take a second to subscribe, like and share.
We’d love to hear your comments and suggestions for future episodes so why not leave a comment.
47 min
October 13, 2025UCStatus Podcast Episode 69: Latest Teams, Teams Phone, Meetings and Rooms News
Hello Readers, I hope you’re well.
Welcome to Episode 69 of the UCStatus Podcast. This episode features me (@randychapman), Mark Vale (@markvale) and Shawn Harry (@shawnharry).
Since the last one we did was July, I got a bunch of stuff from the Message Centre on Teams general, phone and rooms and meetings stuff. Here’s the list…
Phone and Other Teams
Introducing Express setup for auto attendants and call queues in Teams admin center – Voice Apps Express Setup in Teams Admin Center is now generally available, offering a simplified, guided setup for Auto Attendants and Call Queues with minimal configuration, built-in testing, and easy transition to classic setup. Ideal for SMBs, quick deployments, and first-time admins, it requires no activation.
Microsoft Teams: Microsoft Graph APIs for Teams administration now available in beta – Microsoft Graph beta now offers Teams administration APIs for user configuration, number management, and policy assignment. These enable automation and integration for Teams management, accessible with delegated or application permissions in commercial environments.
Microsoft Teams | Know Your Customer (KYC) onboarding required for new phone number requests – Teams admins must complete a one-time KYC onboarding in the Teams Admin Center by submitting business info and documents before provisioning new phone numbers. The process, taking up to two days, applies globally and does not affect existing numbers.
Microsoft Teams Premium will introduce ultra-low latency (ULL) for town hall attendees, reducing delay from 20-30 seconds to near real-time. Available from September to October 2025 for tenants using Microsoft eCDN or no eCDN
Microsoft Teams will introduce a default setting allowing users to view incoming calls in a small, resizable window to reduce disruption.
Microsoft Teams Premium: SMS support expands to Australia
Rollout Pause – Line Key Configuration via Teams Admin Center
Noise suppression for dial-in participants in Teams audio conferences
Microsoft Teams is shortening meeting URLs by removing parameters to improve sharing and security
Improvements in call transfer experience on Teams Phone devices – Microsoft Teams Phone devices will receive improved call transfer features by October 2025, enhancing speed, reliability, and UI clarity for blind and consult transfers across touch and non-touch devices
Microsoft Teams Premium or Microsoft 365 Copilot: New translated recap after multilingual meetings
Session Border Controllers (SBCs) acting as TLS clients towards Microsoft Teams infrastructure: Due to recent changes in Google’s Chrome root program, many public Certificate Authorities (CAs) will stop issuing certificates with the clientAuth Extended Key Usage (EKU).
Source Post
Rooms and Meetings
Admin settings for Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) camera controls for Teams Rooms on Windows – Microsoft Teams Rooms on Windows will introduce an admin setting to disable OEM camera controls
Microsoft Teams Rooms on Windows: Native PTZ controls – delayed to December
Manage voice and face recognition for rooms (MTR-W/MTRA) via device settings – Microsoft Teams Rooms (Windows 4.19+, Android 3.6+) will have new admin UI for managing voice and face recognition, replacing PowerShell configuration. Voice recognition defaults to off. Rollout starts mid-October 2025. Enrollment requires user consent and is completed on-device. Surface Hub and Teams displays are not supported.
Teams Rooms on Windows: Support for facilitator agent in scheduled and ad hoc meetings
Simultaneous role-specific Teams Town hall and Webinar views in Teams Rooms on Windows
Multi-stream IntelliFrame, Cloud IntelliFrame and Multiple camera view support in Webinar and Structured Meetings
People count captured by Cloud IntelliFrame in the Pro Management portal reports
Recommended actions page in the Teams Rooms Pro Management portal
Room Recommender – Starting mid-November 2025, Microsoft Teams will auto-suggest meeting rooms via AI in chats if no room is booked, considering attendee location and room availability
Cloud IntelliFrame now available on Teams Rooms for Android
Enhanced peripheral data in Pro Management portal reports for BYOD spaces – Microsoft Teams is adding peripheral health reporting in the Pro Management portal for BYOD rooms and desks, enabling admins to detect device issues proactively. Room reports need a Teams Shared Devices license
Microsoft Teams Rooms on Android: Town hall attendee experience
Microsoft Teams: Multiple camera switching in Teams Rooms on Windows as a receiver
Teams Rooms on Android and Teams Phone devices face calling and pairing failures due to Continuous Access Evaluation (CAE) policies affecting token validity. To ensure device stability and reliable calling, disable CAE on all Conditional Access policies for these devices, as this does not significantly reduce security.
Copilot Recap
Back by popular demand. Keep in mind that this was generated by AI and may not capture exactly what we said or the sentimenmt and context around it accurately.
Microsoft Teams Admin and Voice Feature Updates: Randy, Mark Vale, and Shawn discussed recent updates to Microsoft Teams admin features, including the introduction of Express setup for auto attendants and call queues, the release of Teams admin Graph APIs in beta, and enhancements to phone number management and policy assignment, with Mark providing technical insights and practical experiences.
Express Setup for Auto Attendants: Randy introduced the new Express setup for auto attendants and call queues in the Teams admin center, and Mark explained that while it allows for quick basic setup, more advanced configurations like call back in queue still require the classic editor. The Express setup is a three-step process for initial configuration, after which full editing is available.
Comparison of Setup Methods: The group compared the Express setup, classic editor, and PowerShell approaches, with Mark noting that Teams admin center’s UI is improving and PowerShell’s role is diminishing for most users, though PowerShell remains useful for automation and complex scenarios.
Graph API for Teams Admin: Randy highlighted the release of Microsoft Graph APIs for Teams admin center in beta, enabling user configuration, number management, and policy assignment without PowerShell. Mark shared that these APIs were previously available to select providers and now allow for easier automation and provisioning, reducing resource requirements and enabling integration with tools like Power Automate.
Device and Policy Management via API: Shawn inquired about device management capabilities, and Mark clarified that the APIs focus on user accounts, allowing policy assignments to users, but device-specific management is still evolving. The discussion touched on the ongoing consolidation of management portals and the desire for a single pane of glass.
Regulatory and Security Changes in Teams Telephony: The team, led by Mark and Randy, reviewed new regulatory requirements such as Know Your Customer (KYC) for phone number provisioning, discussed the global rollout of SMS features, and examined upcoming changes to certificate management and security policies affecting Teams telephony and devices.
KYC for Phone Number Requests: Mark explained that Microsoft now requires KYC checks for new phone number requests to comply with carrier regulations, involving identity and address verification to prevent fraud. Shawn linked this to Microsoft’s broader Secure Future Initiative, and Randy noted the process applies globally and takes about two days.
SMS Feature Expansion and Limitations: The group discussed the availability of SMS in Teams, with Mark noting that SMS is currently limited to the US and Australia, is text-only (no MMS), and subject to regulatory constraints. Mark shared experiences with the lengthy approval process for SMS enablement in the US.
Certificate Management Changes: Mark and Randy detailed upcoming changes to certificate requirements for SBCs (Session Border Controllers), including the need for client authentication parameters and shorter certificate validity periods, which will require more frequent renewals and potentially new automation or manual processes for customers.
Conditional Access and Device Code Flow: Randy and Shawn discussed the impact of Conditional Access Evaluation (CAE) policies and device code flow on Teams devices, recommending that service accounts for Teams Rooms be excluded from CAE to avoid disruptions, and describing the technical details of device authentication and policy exclusions.
Teams Rooms and Meetings Feature Enhancements: Randy and Shawn explored a range of new and upcoming features for Teams Rooms and meetings, including OEM camera control settings, delayed PTZ controls, room-level voice and face recognition management, multi-camera and multi-stream support, and AI-driven room recommendations, with practical commentary on deployment and management challenges.
OEM Camera Controls and PTZ Delays: Randy described the new admin setting to disable OEM camera controls in Teams Rooms on Windows, questioning the rationale behind making smart cameras ‘dumb.’ The group noted that native PTZ (pan-tilt-zoom) controls for Teams Rooms on Windows have been delayed again, impacting vendors who waited for Microsoft’s implementation.
Voice and Face Recognition Management: Randy explained the shift from user policy-based to room-based management for voice and face recognition in Teams Rooms, allowing more granular control but potentially increasing administrative complexity. The settings are now available at the device level for both Windows and Android.
Facilitator Agent and Note-Taking: The facilitator agent, now labeled ‘Take Notes,’ can be invoked in both ad hoc and scheduled meetings, providing a transcript and recap in Microsoft Loop. The team discussed the overlap with transcription features and the evolving naming conventions.
Multi-Camera and Multi-Stream Support: Randy highlighted the introduction of multi-camera view and multi-stream Intelliframe support for Teams Rooms on Windows, webinars, and town halls, noting that Android support lags behind and requesting parity across platforms.
AI-Driven Room Recommendations: Randy introduced the upcoming Room Recommender feature, which will use AI and location data to suggest available meeting rooms in Teams chats, leveraging the Places infrastructure for improved user experience.
Teams Device Management and BYOD Challenges: Randy and Shawn discussed advancements in Teams device management, including enhanced configuration profiles, partial config for Android, and the complexities of managing BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) rooms, highlighting barriers to adoption and the need for better integration and automation.
Configuration Profiles and Partial Config: Randy described improvements in configuration profiles for Teams Rooms, including the ability to use partial config on Android, which allows central and local settings to coexist without overwriting each other, simplifying multinational deployments.
Device Health and Reporting Enhancements: The team noted the addition of health reporting for BYOD spaces and desks, enabling proactive device detection and issue management, provided the rooms have a shared device license.
BYOD Room Onboarding Barriers: Randy explained the cumbersome process required to onboard BYOD rooms into the Pro Management Portal, which involves multiple users plugging into each device, and Shawn emphasized that this is a significant barrier to adoption that Microsoft needs to address.
Integration with OEM Tools: The discussion covered the limitations of OEM management tools, which cannot provide full meeting telemetry, and the need for Microsoft to offer APIs for better integration, though the group agreed that using two tools is manageable for now.
Security, Compliance, and Organizational Challenges: Shawn and Randy addressed the organizational complexities of managing security and compliance for Teams Rooms and devices, emphasizing the need for coordinated policies across IT silos and the risks of overly restrictive or uncoordinated conditional access policies.
IT Silos and Policy Coordination: Randy and Shawn discussed how different IT teams (Exchange, Intune, AD, etc.) often operate in silos, leading to misaligned policies that can inadvertently disrupt Teams Rooms functionality, and stressed the importance of cross-team collaboration for effective device management.
It was a fun discussion as always. Thanks for listening! Catch you next time.
As always, we’d love to hear your thoughts. Leave a comment below.
You can listen in-line in this post, or if you prefer, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Podcasts, TuneIn or iHeartRadio. The links are below.
If you’ve enjoyed this or any other episodes of the UCStatus Podcast, why not take a second to subscribe, like and share.
We’d love to hear your comments and suggestions for future episodes so why not leave a comment.
57 min
July 17, 2025UCStatus Podcast Episode 68: Teams Voice Special
Hello Readers, I hope you’re well.
Welcome to Episode 68 of the UCStatus Podcast. This episode features me (@randychapman), Mark Vale (@markvale) and Shawn Harry (@shawnharry).
This week for a change I cultivated a list of Teams voice specific news and updates so Mark didn’t get bored . The list wasn’t that long so I added some room stuff at the end. Here’s the list…
Message Centre
New Queues app service plan listed under Teams Premium
Configure line keys in Teams admin center for streamlined device management – mid to end of July
admins can assign line keys in the Teams admin center in two ways:
Using a generic configuration section (device-agnostic)
Using device model-specific templates
Custom Ringtone Behavior and Ringtones for Assigned Line Keys
users can personalize the behavior and ringtone for each assigned line key—choosing from ring only, ring with flash, or flash only. Unique ringtones can also be assigned per line key, making it easier to identify calls at a glance.
New feature suggests contacts for call transfers on Teams Phone devices
Roadmap
Support noise suppression for dial-in participants to Audio conferences
What’s new for Direct Routing – June 2025
New Call Troubleshooting via SIP Call Flow is available in TAC
Network Effectiveness Ratio (NER) metric update – upgrading the fomula used to calculate the metric
Immediately upgrade to the latest SBA version
Versions from before February 2025 will cease to function 1st September
There are some security features in the newer versions which are incompatible with older versions
What’s new in Teams June 2025
Users can join Teams Town hall and Webinar using PSTN codes
Organizers and presenters can join a town hall using dial-in details
Copilot generated summaries for call transfers in Teams Client and on Teams phone devices
Opening Calls in a small window in Teams
Call waiting beep
Real-Time Text (RTT) for more inclusive calling supported in both Teams calls and meetings
Wish List
We also decided to start a wish list of things we want in Teams telephony
Wrap up codes and wrap up timer
Ring on phone only rather than all signed in devices
CTI integration – Salesforce and Hubspot, Dynamics of course
Better analytics. Department Manager friendly
Teams Rooms
Since the voice stuff didn’t take that long to cover I added some recent Teams Room stuff that I thought was worth talking about
No more MTR on Windows in TAC. All moved to Pro Portal
Teams Town hall screen management privileges in Teams Rooms on Windows
AI assistant in the Teams Rooms Pro Management portal
Call quality reports for BYOD rooms in the Pro Management portal
Expanded and enhanced peripheral support for BYOD spaces
Android device health signals in the Pro Management portal
We didn’t have the Copilot recap notes for this one for some reason again. Sorry
It was a fun discussion as always. Thanks for listening! Catch you next time.
As always, we’d love to hear your thoughts. Leave a comment below.
You can listen in-line in this post, or if you prefer, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Podcasts, TuneIn or iHeartRadio. The links are below.
If you’ve enjoyed this or any other episodes of the UCStatus Podcast, why not take a second to subscribe, like and share.
We’d love to hear your comments and suggestions for future episodes so why not leave a comment.
46 min
June 12, 2025UCStatus Podcast Episode 67: Commsverse 2025 and other recent Teams news
Hello Readers, I hope you’re well.
Welcome to Episode 67 of the UCStatus Podcast. This episode features me (@randychapman), Mark Vale (@markvale) and Shawn Harry (@shawnharry).
This week we chat about Commsverse which is next week. There are, at the time of writing, still tickets to be had. Commsverse 2025 – Tickets
We also had a short list of recent news from the message centre and roadmap
Message Centre
Android based auth changes coming soon
To enhance security capabilities such as Continuous Access Evaluation and IP-based conditional access enforcement, Microsoft is transitioning these devices to modern, secure authentication using Entra ID (AAD) based tokens.
Will require a specific version.
AOSP migration update
Support for making a silent test call
New MTRA app
Facilitator
Local PTZ
Speaker recognition
Improvements and fixes
New AI assistant for admins in the Teams Rooms Pro Management portal
New threaded conversation layout option for channels
Microsoft Teams for iOS/Android: New location sharing settings for emergency calls and more
Check-in and auto release for non-Teams meetings and in-person meetings
Automatically set work location by connecting to a Wi-Fi network
Adding and editing external contacts on Teams phone devices
Remotely manage contacts in Teams admin center
Roadmap
Apply partial settings for Android devices using configuration profiles in the Teams admin center
Shared spaces insights in the Pro Management portal
Browser support on Teams Rooms on Windows touch boards
bulk operations on Teams Devices through the Teams admin center and Pro Portal
We didn’t have the Copilot recap notes for this one for some reason. Sorry
It was still a fun discussion. Thanks for listening! Catch you next time.
As always, we’d love to hear your thoughts. Leave a comment below.
You can listen in-line in this post, or if you prefer, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Podcasts, TuneIn or iHeartRadio. The links are below.
If you’ve enjoyed this or any other episodes of the UCStatus Podcast, why not take a second to subscribe, like and share.
We’d love to hear your comments and suggestions for future episodes so why not leave a comment.
41 min
April 11, 2025UCStatus Podcast Episode 66: Teams new after Enterprise Connect 2025
Hello Readers, I hope you’re well.
Welcome to Episode 66 of the UCStatus Podcast. This episode features me (@randychapman), Mark Vale (@markvale) and Shawn Harry (@shawnharry).
This week we have a ton of stuff to cover off the back of Enterprise Connect 2-25. There’s usually a lot of stuff revealed at EC and this year was no exception. I had a list of stuff written down,
Facilitator in MTR
Face Recognition in MTR on Windows with Cloud IntelliFrame
Speaker recognition and attribution on MTR on Android. e.g. single channel audio, transcription and attribution
ability to send chats to attendees in the lobby with lobby chat
Room recommender
Join as attendee to Microsoft events and town halls on MTRoW
Slide control for presenters
Meeting or event presenters can share control of slides with fellow presenters. Eliminating the “next slide please”
Migration tool for Teams
Streamlined, unified role based access for Teams device management across both TAC and PMP
Expanded and enhanced peripheral support for BYOD spaces
BYOD spaces now support additional room and desk peripherals, including docking stations and webcams.
call quality reports for BYOS rooms in PMP
Line keys on phone devices with touch screens: Generally available now
Line key support for shared line and call transfers
New user setting to view incoming calls in a small window
PSTN call extensibility: Generally available now
Teams Phone extensibility for Microsoft Dynamics 365 Contact Center and certified ISVs solutions: Available in public preview in April
Teams Phone Mobile is now generally available with several new operators, including Bell Canada, Odido (Netherlands), Vodafone UK, and Vodafone Germany.
Shared call history for call delegates: Generally available now
SMS for Teams Calling Plans in US & CA: Generally available in US and Canada
Queues app: barge/whisper/monitor/takeover: available in public preview in April
Use Copilot during Teams calls without turning on transcription or recording : Available now in public preview
Copilot summary for transferred calls: Available in public preview in April
Microsoft Teams Rooms on Android: New local pan-tilt-zoom (PTZ) controls
Teams Rooms Pro Management portal update: Generally available early next quarter
Admins now have expanded device health signals
consolidation of admin portals
IT admins can manage rooms more effectively with the AI assistant in the Pro Management portal.
First Native Bluetooth certification issued to Logitech for the Zone Wireless 2 and Zone 305. More devices coming
Occupancy status on Teams panels
Ad-hoc individual desk booking
Auto-update workplace presence with Wi-Fi
Windows 10 End of Support for Microsoft Teams Rooms on Windows
but I also have the recap from Copilot:
MTR on Windows Devices Management: Randy announced that MTR on Windows devices will be moving from the Teams Admin Center to the Pro Management Portal. This change will take effect from April, and all devices will be enrolled in the Pro Management Portal regardless of their license type.
Transition Details: Randy explained that from April, the next version of the Teams app will uninstall the TAC agent from MTRs and enroll all devices in the Pro Management Portal (PMP), regardless of their license type.
License Implications: Randy clarified that traditionally, devices with a Pro license were automatically enrolled in the PMP. Now, all Teams Rooms devices will be enrolled in the PMP, but management capabilities will follow the license type.
Customer Impact: Shawn raised concerns about customers with basic licenses, noting that they will have minimal management capabilities in the PMP, such as rebooting devices and checking online status.
Pro Management Portal Capabilities: Randy explained that the management capabilities in the Pro Management Portal will follow the license type. Pro users will get full management capabilities, standard users will get some, and basic users will get minimal management capabilities.
Pro License Benefits: Randy detailed that Pro license users will have access to all management capabilities in the PMP, including advanced settings and configurations.
Standard License Limitations: For standard license users, Randy mentioned that they will have access to some management features but not all, limiting their ability to fully manage their devices.
Basic License Restrictions: Randy emphasized that basic license users will have very limited management capabilities, primarily being able to reboot devices and check their online status.
Facilitator Feature: Randy introduced the facilitator feature, which uses copilot to take notes during meetings. Users can scan a QR code to invoke the facilitator, which will create a loop page with meeting notes and actions.
Feature Overview: Randy described the facilitator feature as a tool that joins meetings to take notes, creating a loop page with all actions and discussions recorded.
QR Code Activation: Users can invoke the facilitator by scanning a QR code with their mobile phone, ensuring that the meeting owner controls the information generated.
Loop Page Benefits: The loop page created by the facilitator is persistent across multiple platforms, allowing edits in one place to reflect everywhere it is embedded.
Settings Management in Pro Management Portal: Randy mentioned that settings management in the Pro Management Portal has improved for Teams Rooms on Windows. Users can now apply changes immediately or during the maintenance window.
Immediate Application: Randy explained that users can now choose to apply settings changes immediately, rather than waiting for the nightly reboot, ensuring quicker implementation of changes.
Maintenance Window Option: Users still have the option to apply changes during the maintenance window, allowing for flexibility in managing updates and settings.
Digital Signage Implementation: This feature was first implemented for digital signage, allowing immediate application of changes to ensure the correct content is displayed without delay.
Face Recognition and Speaker Recognition: Randy shared that face recognition and speaker recognition features are coming to MTR on Windows and Android. These features will help identify participants and attribute their speech during meetings.
Room Recommender: Randy discussed the room recommender feature, which uses AI to suggest meeting rooms based on the number of attendees and their location. This feature aims to make in-person collaboration easier.
Teams Phone Mobile Availability: Randy announced that Teams Phone Mobile is now generally available with several new operators, including Bell Canada, Odido in the Netherlands, Vodafone UK, and Vodafone Germany.
Shared Call History for Call Delegates: Randy mentioned that shared call history for call delegates is now generally available, allowing delegates to view the call history of the lines they manage.
SMS for Teams Calling Plans: Randy shared that SMS for Teams Calling Plans is now generally available in the US and Canada. However, the approval process for 10 DLC registration can take several weeks.
Barge, Whisper, Monitor, and Takeover: Randy announced that barge, whisper, monitor, and takeover features will be available for public preview in April. These features are essential for contact center operations.
Copilot Summary for Transferred Calls: Randy explained that copilot can now provide a summary for transferred calls, allowing the receiving agent to quickly understand the context of the call.
Teams Rooms on Android PTZ Controls: Randy mentioned that local PTZ controls are coming to Teams Rooms on Android before Windows. This feature will allow users to control the camera’s pan, tilt, and zoom functions.
Occupancy Status on Teams Panels: Randy shared that teams panels can now display occupancy status based on room sensors. This feature helps users know if a room is occupied even if it is not booked.
Ad Hoc Individual Desk Booking: Randy discussed the new ad hoc individual desk booking feature, which allows users to book individual desks instead of desk pools. This feature is useful for desks with docking stations.
Windows 10 End of Support for Teams Rooms: Randy announced that Windows 10 support for Teams Rooms on Windows will end soon. Users are encouraged to upgrade to Windows 11 to continue receiving updates and support.
Surface Hub Upgrade: Randy mentioned that Surface Hub devices will no longer support the Team OS and will need to be upgraded to Windows 11. This upgrade will provide better performance and more features.
I think that covers it. Thanks for listening! Catch you next time.
As always, we’d love to hear your thoughts. Leave a comment below.
You can listen in-line in this post, or if you prefer, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Podcasts, TuneIn or iHeartRadio. The links are below.
If you’ve enjoyed this or any other episodes of the UCStatus Podcast, why not take a second to subscribe, like and share.
We’d love to hear your comments and suggestions for future episodes so why not leave a comment.
55 min
February 12, 2025UCStatus Podcast Episode 65: Teams Insider crossover with Tom Arbuthnot – thoughts on 2025 from a combined 50+ years in UC
Hello Readers, I hope you’re well.
Welcome to Episode 65 of the UCStatus Podcast. This episode features me (@randychapman), Mark Vale (@markvale) and Shawn Harry (@shawnharry).
This week we have a returning special guest, Tom Arbuthnot (@TomArbuthnot). We’re also doing something new, a crossover episode for Tom’s Teams Insider podcast. Look out for the episode there too. I do hope to go again in the future.
We didn’t have a fixed agenda or list of topics this time. It was a very fluid conversation looking back at last year and prior with all that’s happened in Teams and M365 and a look ahead. The look ahead also has some combination wishes and predictions. So Microsoft if you’re paying attention, we have your roadmap laid out.
Since we didn’t have a list and I didn’t write down what we talked about I’m also trying a first, and that is giving you the Teams Copilot recap verbatim.
Here you go
Teams Premium Uptake: Shawn and Tom Arbuthnot discussed the uptake of Teams Premium among customers. Tom mentioned that while their small company of six people uses it, customer adoption is still spotty. Some customers buy it for specific features like webinars or branding, but blanket adoption is rare.
Teams Client Changes: Tom Arbuthnot highlighted the significant changes to the Teams client last year, including the new calendar and the introduction of unified contacts. These changes are laying the foundation for future innovations and improvements.
Copilot and Intelligent Recap: Randy and Tom Arbuthnot discussed the value of the intelligent recap feature in Teams Premium, which provides a summary of meetings. Tom emphasized that this feature alone could justify the cost of Teams Premium for heavy meeting users.
Voice and Video in Teams: Mark Vale and Shawn discussed the current state of voice and video in Teams. Mark mentioned that while Teams was revolutionary a year ago, it has now become a standard tool that no one is particularly excited about.
Teams Premium Features: Tom Arbuthnot and Randy discussed the various features of Teams Premium, including branding, the Q&A app, and the potential for barge and whisper functionality. These features are expected to enhance the value of Teams Premium.
Copilot in Teams: Randy and Tom Arbuthnot discussed the proliferation of Copilot in Teams and its impact on the platform. They noted that Copilot is becoming a significant part of Teams, with many sessions at the summit dedicated to it.
Future of Teams and AI: Tom Arbuthnot and Mark Vale discussed the future direction of Teams, including the potential for AI-driven features and the integration of Copilot. They speculated that Teams might eventually be replaced by a more AI-centric platform.
Contact Center AI Integration: Mark Vale and Tom Arbuthnot discussed the potential for AI integration in contact centers. Mark mentioned that call recording vendors are looking to integrate conversation data into Copilot to provide better customer insights and recommendations.
Teams and BYOD: Randy and Shawn discussed the surprising adoption of BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) in Teams, despite initial resistance. They noted that Microsoft has figured out how to monetize BYOD and is adding features to support it.
Teams and Cross-Platform Interoperability: Tom Arbuthnot and Shawn discussed the challenges of cross-platform interoperability in Teams. They noted that while Teams does not natively support SIP, there are gateways and third-party solutions to enable interoperability.
Teams and Security: Tom Arbuthnot and Shawn discussed the security implications of open federation in Teams. They noted that many organizations are closing federation due to phishing concerns, and Microsoft is introducing new controls to address these issues.
Teams and AI-Driven Features: Tom Arbuthnot and Mark Vale discussed the potential for AI-driven features in Teams, including real-time coaching and sentiment analysis in contact centers. They noted that AI could significantly enhance the value of voice interactions.
Teams and Copilot Adoption: Randy and Tom Arbuthnot discussed the challenges of adopting Copilot in organizations. They noted that Microsoft is offering free and pay-as-you-go options to encourage adoption and make it easier for organizations to justify the cost.
Teams and Threaded Replies: Tom Arbuthnot mentioned that threaded replies are coming to chat in Teams, which will help reduce friction in adoption and improve the user experience.
Teams and ARM-Based Devices: Tom Arbuthnot and Randy discussed the potential for ARM-based devices in Teams Rooms. They noted that ARM devices offer better performance per dollar and lower fan noise, making them an attractive option for Teams Rooms.
Thanks for listening! Catch you next time.
As always, we’d love to hear your thoughts. Leave a comment below.
You can listen in-line in this post, or if you prefer, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Podcasts, TuneIn or iHeartRadio. The links are below.
If you’ve enjoyed this or any other episodes of the UCStatus Podcast, why not take a second to subscribe, like and share.
We’d love to hear your comments and suggestions for future episodes so why not leave a comment.
50 min

About UCStatus Podcast

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The UCStatus Podcast is your resource for news and insights for Microsoft UC, focusing on Teams and Skype for Business. It is presented by current and former Microsoft MVPs and experts in the Unified…

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