Microsoft Teams has been around for a while now, and the service appears to be at the top of the priority queue. Following various new features and enhancements, Microsoft Teams is making it easier to connect with users outside of your organization who are not using Teams, thanks to the long-awaited addition of SMS messaging.
Back in June 2024, Microsoft announced its plans to furnish the ability to send and receive SMS messages directly from the Teams app on desktop or mobile. Now, Microsoft Teams users may finally send and receive SMS text messages within Teams Chat.
As per a Microsoft Learn blog post, this SMS functionality comes with Teams Calling Plans, which is available for users in the United States, Puerto Rico, and Canada. In case of sending an SMS outside these regions, Teams may block these messages and display failure notification or no delivery confirmation.
It is important to note that all SMS messaging to and from Microsoft Teams is considered as:
- Business messaging
- Non-consumer messaging
- Application-to-Person (A2P) messaging.
This references mean that SMS in Teams is not categorized as consumer SMS messaging. This clarification that Teams messaging is A2P is essential for regulatory compliance. Regulatory bodies and the Carrier service providers often have strict policy rules for businesses to use SMS communication with customers.
As for using SMS messaging on Teams, the organization and its users have to register to use 10DLC (10 Digit Long Code) network. Such registrations reduce the chance of flagging messages as spam.
The company intending to use the SMS messaging feature is required to facilitate a registration with The Campaign Registry (TCR) before Microsoft Teams Calling Plan can be enabled for SMS. This registration involves two parts: Brand (identification of company) and Campaign (purpose of SMS operation).
| Teams Calling Plan | Supports SMS capability | Included SMS (threshold before paying overage) |
|---|---|---|
| PAYG (Pay-as-you-go) | Yes | 0 |
| Domestic 120 | Yes | 100 |
| Domestic | Yes | 200 |
| Domestic + International | Yes | 200 |
| Teams Phone + Calling Plan Bundle | Yes | Phone + Domestic = 200 (if purchased as Calling Plan bundle) / Phone + PAYG = 0 (if purchased as PAYG bundle) |
With Microsoft phasing out Skype starting in May, the inclusion of SMS functionality in Teams seems like a strategic move to encourage Skype users to transition to Teams.
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