Microsoft has launched a paid standalone subscription from Teams that is separate from Office 365.
Microsoft Teams Essentials sits between the free version of Teams and Microsoft 365 Basic, and is priced at £3 ($4) per user per month. The new offering is aimed at the SMB market.
Jared Spataro, Corporate Vice President for Microsoft 365, said:
“Teams Essentials simplifies communications for small businesses and community groups with a single solution for chat and meetings—saving time, and most importantly, keeping meetings and conversations in context”
“It includes tools to work effectively with anyone, including Office web apps, file sharing, group chats, task management, and more.”
Microsoft claimed that Teams Essentials is the cheapest all-in-one solution available on the market.
It features unlimited group meetings for up to three hours with up to 300 participants; 10 GB of cloud storage per user; and phone and web support from Microsoft.
It does not include more advanced features such as meeting recordings and transcripts; breakout rooms; webinars; and integrated third-party applications.
The bundle is available directly from Microsoft online and also from partners including Crayon, Also and Pax8 – as well as distributors such as Tech Data and Ingram Micro.
Earlier this week Microsoft revealed that it would be retiring its Business Voice package and combining it with Teams Calling Essentials to create to ‘Teams Phone with Calling Plan’.
