Mitel Reportedly Preparing To File For Chapter 11 Bankruptcy
Mitel is reportedly preparing to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
As reported by Bloomberg, the Canadian enterprise communications titan is currently negotiating debt restructuring with its creditors. The company is allegedly pursuing this avenue because of declining revenues and upcoming debt maturation.
Bloomberg, citing sources with direct understanding of the negotiations but who requested anonymity, suggested Mitel’s debt instruments have seen unprecedented depreciation, with financial intermediaries assigning minimal value to the loans.
Mitel told UC Today:
Mitel has been proactively working closely with our lenders to optimise our capital structure and position the company for sustained, long-term success. All the paths we are evaluating will allow Mitel to continue operating in the ordinary course and will set us up to be an even stronger vendor and partner. Please note that any definitive updates will come directly from Mitel.”
Multiple market sources cited by Bloomberg indicate that Mitel’s $235 million first-lien term loan, set to mature in December 2025, is currently trading at a fraction of a cent on the dollar.
Alianza Finalises Metaswitch Acquisition from Microsoft in UCaaS Landscape Shake-up
Alianza has confirmed its acquisition of Metaswitch from Microsoft in a major shakeup of the UCaaS landscape.
First revealed in December, cloud communications leader Alianza has completed its acquisition of Metaswitch from Microsoft, following the Definitive Agreement announced in December 2024. Alianza affirms that by combining Metaswitch’s capabilities with its own cloud-native solutions, service providers can modernise core networks, enhance operational efficiency, and unlock new revenue opportunities through innovative offerings.
“The acquisition of Metaswitch by Alianza will accelerate product innovation and growth for thousands of service providers across the industry who face similar obstacles in modernising their networks,” said Brian Beutler, CEO and founder of Alianza.
“Network infrastructure and operating complexity is often an insurmountable barrier for communications service providers, but with the combination of Alianza and Metaswitch, we are bringing together two world-class teams with complementary expertise to overcome challenges and unleash innovation at a pace not seen in decades across the telecom ecosystem.”
With the completion of this acquisition, Alianza now serves over 1,000 comms service providers, including 19 of the top 20 global operators.
Microsoft Teams SMS Has Arrived For North American Users
SMS on Microsoft Teams, first announced last year, is now available—but only for a select few.
Teams users can now send and receive SMS messages directly, eliminating the need for third-party apps. However, there are some key limitations to consider.
The new SMS feature in Microsoft Teams is currently limited to US and Canadian Teams Calling Plan users. To access it, users must have a Microsoft Teams license, a Teams Phone license, and a Microsoft Teams Calling Plan. For now, this built-in SMS functionality remains unavailable outside these regions.
Admins can enable SMS messaging for users through the Teams admin center by navigating to Voice > Phone numbers > Numbers, selecting the user’s phone number, and clicking Enable SMS. Once activated, users can send and receive texts directly within Microsoft Teams.
Zoom Workplace For Clinicians Now In Public Beta To Empower Healthcare Orgs
Zoom has announced that its Workplace for Clinicians solution is now in public beta, with general availability planned for the end of March.
Zoom highlights that Workplace for Clinicians is specifically designed to streamline clinical workflows, allowing doctors, nurses, and practitioners to spend more time on patient care and engagement than documentation and administrative tasks.
In addition, Zoom has announced the select beta of Custom AI Companion for Healthcare, which will allow healthcare IT decision-makers to customise AI Companion experiences through the upcoming Zoom AI Studio.
Ritu Mukherjee, Head of Product, Business Acceleration & Readiness at Zoom, commented:
Zoom Workplace for Clinicians and Custom AI Companion for Healthcare are part of our continued commitment to driving innovation that further enhances patient care and boosts productivity, all while providing clinicians much-needed support.”
Zoom Workplace for Clinicians will become generally available by the end of the month, while Zoom Custom AI Companion for Healthcare is expected to launch this summer.
