In this research note, we take a look at the Microsoft in the room. The Teams platform is growing rapidly. This report is focused on Teams, but the vendor landscape is significantly changing. Microsoft Teams UCaaS and Zoom Phone simply did not exist a a few years ago. Google has made significant investments in Workspace and Meet. Service providers are largely aligning with Cisco (Webex Calling, Broadworks, and BroadCloud) and RingCentral. This isn't business as usual, it's a the arrival of the mega providers in enterprise comms, and competitive providers need a strategy.

The Teams Dilemma
By Dave Michels, June, 2021

1. Overview

1. In April 2021, it was revealed at Microsoft Build that Teams had 145M daily active users. That’s 26% higher than the 115M daily active users Microsoft revealed in October 2020. The number is presumably higher today.
2. Looking back still further, in March 2020, Microsoft reported Teams had 32Mdaily active users, and then 75M in April 2020. The global pandemic was very good for Teams. 
3. Daily Active Users (DAU) are self-measured and notoriously difficult to compare. Google and Zoom measure DAU differently — by focusing on activity, not users. A single user can be counted multiple times if they participate in different meetings. Google reported 100M DAU last year. 
4. Slack last revealed it had 12.5M concurrent users at the beginning of the pandemic. It has not provided a revision to that figure. 
5. Such extraordinary growth has significant implications for the enterprise communications sector and creates both opportunities and risks. The Teams Dilemma is how other vendors can respond. 

The full report is 7 pages long and included in enterprise subscriptions.