Microsoft Azure Communication Services, the CPaaS (Communication Platform as a Service) platform is the platform that powers Microsoft Teams, it has now reached "Generally Available" status, which means it is now supported and has a formal SLA some elements are still in preview).
Azure Communication Services provides libraries for mobile, desktop and web applications, allowing developers to add the following applications:
Voice and video calls
Make and receive voice and video calls over IP, including interoperability with Microsoft Teams.
Chat / SMS
Enable One-to-One or Group Chat
Add SMS to applications and connect with users who prefer mobile communication. Currently only available in the US
PSTN telephony voice calls
Allow users to interact with a traditional telephone number, facilitated by the PSTN (Public Switched Telephone Network) for voice calls. Currently only available in the US
Examples of scenarios
- SMS reminders for appointments and follow-up surveys
- Web chat
- VoIP and B2C video calling from websites and applications, for example, from a patient to a doctor or from a shopper to a retailer, in these scenarios, "B" users could use Microsoft Teams
PSTN coverage and SIP interface
Currently, the availability of SMS and PSTN phone numbers is limited to paid Azure subscriptions that have a U.S. billing address and communication service resources that have a U.S. data location, much less than many other CPAAS readers. We expect this to be expanded as well. Microsoft covers 24 countries directly for PSTN calling plans for Microsoft Teams, I hope the same coverages will be offered to ACS.
ACS supports a private pre-release "SIP interface". This allows you to connect via a certified SBC , PBX, analog phone adapters or another PSTN operator. The certification of the supported SBC is in progress. Meanwhile, in the overview you can use one of the many certified gateways Teams.
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