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Here we are in June 2020 folks and what a year it’s been so far. We’ve seen a massive surge in homeworking technology and as we start to recover from the effects of the pandemic, the industry is showing no signs of slowing.
This month we’ve been delving into all things team collaboration as our editorial focus topic. A big shout out to SCB Global for being this month’s headline sponsor who is making the journey to Microsoft Teams simple with their OPTO4Teams solution.
Whilst I have you, submissions for UC Awards 2020 ended on the 12th June so thank you to everyone who’s applied. Watch out for the shortlist announcement on the 17th of July.
Plenty of big news this month, here are the top 10 most popular stories:
Microsoft Will Soon Enable 49 On-Screen Attendees
Tired of only being able to see a handful of people in your video call? That issue might be coming to an end. Microsoft recently announced that it’s going to be expanding its current video grid layout, which only features 9 people. According to Microsoft, the roadmap for Teams includes a plan to increase the number of people viewable in a call at the same time to 49.
This will be a massive enhancement to Microsoft’s video conferencing experience. The upgrade will put Microsoft in line with Zoom, which has always stayed one step ahead of Microsoft when it came to multi-window video experiences. Check out the full report on the upcoming changes to Microsoft Teams here.
Avaya Announces $628 Million Revenue
Here at UC Today, we’ve been following the Avaya story avidly for the last few years, watching as the brand evolves to suit a new landscape in the cloud. In recent years, Avaya has put more time and effort into building its position in the SaaS landscape. Just recently, in 2020, Avaya launched its UCaaS offering: Avaya Cloud Office.
As the world continues to transform, with more demand for remote and software-based tools than ever before, Avaya’s journey into the cloud couldn’t have come at a better time. In our recent report, we discovered that Avaya has definitely reaped the rewards of a more flexible cloud delivery strategy. The revenue that Avaya announced in it’s most recent earnings report was $628 million. You can discover more insights here.
Don’t miss Avaya’s Cloud Office virtual event which launches on the 30th June. It’s a free 5-day event and will also be made available on demand for 30 days after that. Across the week you will get the chance to explore their new Avaya Cloud Office solution, so register now.
Microsoft Reveals June Update
As the company leading the way to the future of enterprise collaboration, Microsoft always rolls out new and improved methods for teams to stay connected when working remotely. The most recent update from Microsoft Teams arrived for June, providing things like Microsoft’s policy-based recording API, intended to improve team compliance.
Our very own Rob Scott caught up with Microsoft MVP Tom Arbuthnot to discuss some of the latest releases from Microsoft Teams this month. Check out the latest video for an insight into everything from Microsoft’s purchase of MetaSwitch, to the news that arrived from the Build online event. You can see the full vlog here.
Should Slack Purchase Fuze?
Slack is one of the most popular ways for team members to collaborate in the digital landscape. However, this tool also lacks some of the most crucial tools that come with other leading services. For instance, there’s no service for native video conferencing or calling. You can’t have a complete unified communication and collaboration experience with Slack alone.
That’s why the Founder and Principal Analyst of ZK Research, Zeus Kerravala, believes that it might be time for Slack to buy themselves a UC solution. In particular, Zeus thinks that Slack could benefit from buying leading cloud communication company, Fuze. What would it mean for Slack to have its own communication tools? See whether you agree with Kerravala’s assessment here.
Zoom & Genesys Join Forces
Cloud contact centre leader, Genesys is one of the first companies to integrate with the Zoom Meetings and Zoom Phone solution, in a recent partnership. In a strategy intended to improve collaboration experiences, the companies will be working together to offer Zoom PBX performance to Genesys customers. Clients will be able to access both Zoom for video collaboration, and the Genesys cloud contact centre, with AI-enhanced self service tools.
The new partnership ensures that remote employees can work together more seamlessly through Zoom Meetings, without leaving the Genesys Cloud environment. This eliminates the demand to jump back and forth between presentations, meetings, and other services. Learn more about the new partnership here.
Workplace from Facebook Rooms
Workplace from Facebook is one of the leading solutions in the collaboration marketplace today. The service gives companies access to a familiar and comfortable environment where team members can share content and ideas in real-time. Recently, Workplace from Facebook updated its offering to include “Rooms”. The Rooms experience reinvents collaboration with organic video experiences.
You can create links to rooms in Workplace Chat and share videos with your entire team instantly. There’s also access to unique features, like auto-generated captions, live producer streaming, and real-time translations too. Read our full review of Workplace from Facebook rooms here.
The Outcome of Facebook Buying GIPHY
Facebook is the world’s largest social networking site, reaching people all around the globe. Over the years, Facebook has developed its stack by purchasing other market leaders, like Instagram, WhatsApp, and now, the GIF company, GIPHY. The GIPHY website and app is one of the most popular ways for team members and individuals to send each other animated images online.
GIPHY is available on Twitter, WhatsApp, Microsoft Teams, and Slack. It’s no wonder that the company has a user base of around 300 million people. The question is, now that Facebook holds the keys to the GIPHY kingdom, what will this mean to other collaboration tools, like Microsoft Teams? Will it be possible for people to continue sending GIFs to their colleagues through the Microsoft app? We spoke to Microsoft MVP and Principal Solutions Architect for Modality Systems, Tom Arbuthnot, to find out.
Slack Comments on the Future of Work
Slack, one of the leading providers of team collaboration technology, recently revealed that the UK workforce has enjoyed working from home during this pandemic period. Slack says that the UK user base is particularly fond of opportunities to have more late starts and early finishes. Additionally, teams working from home like taking more breaks to relax throughout the day.
It’s no surprise that the recent changes in our global environment have forced many companies to change the way that we work. Everywhere, organisations are embracing a massive shift to remote working. Most experts believe that going forward, this remote landscape will continue to offer more benefits to businesses and employees alike. Read up on the latest findings from the Slack user report here.
Poly Introduces New Room Solutions
Poly, one of the market leaders in communication and collaboration hardware, recently introduced some new tools for its portfolio. The Poly Microsoft Teams solutions aim to provide businesses with more meaningful collaborative experiences. The Poly G10-T, G40-T and G-80T promise a different level of conversation, complete with video and audio tools.
Now that Microsoft Teams has more than 75 million daily active users, it’s clear to see why Poly might want to roll out some custom-made experiences for Teams users. Poly’s room solutions come with everything you need for video and audio collaboration. You can check out the new lineup in our latest report here.
Microsoft Buys Metaswitch
Microsoft has been taking a lot of steps to improve it’s competitiveness lately. That includes adding new features to Microsoft Teams and exploring the world of 5G. Recently, Microsoft purchased Metaswitch to help strengthen its UCaaS proposition. According to Founder and Principal Analyst of Balkaya Consulting, Fazil Balkaya this is just the tip of the iceberg.
Fazil told UC Today about his forecasts for the future of Microsoft. According to Balkaya, this is a service provider acquisition, and Microsoft is planning on using the purchase to increase the value of its mobile functionalities. Microsoft is on the path to creating an incredible remote and mobile experience for the workplace of tomorrow. Check out Fazil’s insights here.
What were your favourite reports from the past week? Let us know in the comments below. Don’t forget to join the conversation on social media too. You can find us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.
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