Microsoft Teams users can now chat with and call millions of Skype users

Microsoft Teams is a replacement for Skype for Business, and the two systems have been interoperable for some time. Last year, Microsoft announced that Teams users will be able to chat with and call Skype-using consumers and vice versa. The feature has been on the Office 365 roadmap since July last year, and is finally rolling out this month.

With Microsoft Teams and Skype interoperability,

• Teams users can search for and start a one-on-one text-only conversation or an audio/video call with a Skype user.
• Skype users can search for and start a one-on-one text-only conversation or an audio/video call with a Teams user.

This Teams and Skype interoperability feature is now available on the desktop, web, and mobile for both Teams and Skype. There are some limitations as well, read about them below.

• Conversations are text-only. This means that there’s no rich formatting, @mentions, emojis, or other any of the other chat features that are available in a native Teams chat experience.
• Conversations are one-on-one only. Group chats aren’t supported.
• Teams users and Skype users can’t see each other’s presence.
• Searching for Skype users by using their Skype ID or phone number isn’t supported.

IT Admins can block this feature based on their organization’s policies.

You can learn more about this feature here.