This archive report was first published on 9 July 2020.
Microsoft Teams Expands to Accommodate Larger Meetings ¶
Published on July 9, 2020
Microsoft Teams is upgrading its virtual platform to accommodate larger groups for meetings and classes. The platform will now be able to allow in 20,000 people to watch a presentation or discussion.
While the 20,000 participants at a go are for a view-only meeting experience, the new update also allows attendees to chat, unmute to talk, and turn on their videos for real-time collaboration.
Teams meetings are growing to support up to 1,000 participants, up from a maximum of 250 participants currently. This expansion aims to help users feel more connected with their team and reduce meeting fatigue, making meetings more inclusive and engaging.
According to Jared Spataro, Corporate Vice President for Microsoft 365, “As the global response to COVID-19 evolves, communities around the world have moved from an era of “remote everything” into a more hybrid model of work, learning, and life. And as we all scramble to keep up, the future of work and education is being shaped before our eyes. At Microsoft, we have spent the last few months learning from our customers and studying how they use our tools.”
Microsoft has also announced the Together Mode, which will be available for users from next month. This mode makes meetings more engaging by helping you focus on other people’s faces and body language and making it easier to pick up on the non-verbal cues that are so important to human interaction.
Additionally, the Dynamic view offers an extraordinary new meeting experience, dynamically optimizing shared content and video participants using AI. New controls—including the ability to show shared content and specific participants side-by-side—let you personalize the view to suit your preferences and needs.
The Video filters feature allows users to subtly adjust lighting levels and soften the focus of the camera to customize their appearance. The Reflect messaging extension is also introduced, which gives managers, leaders, and teachers an easy way to check in with how their team or students are feeling.
Other new features include the ability to react during a meeting using emojis, live reactions with PowerPoint Live Presentations, and chats sent during a Teams meeting surfacing on the screens of all meeting participants.
Microsoft also intends to launch live transcripts later this year to provide another way to follow along with what has been said and who said it.
