Connectivity Articles

Now you can use Microsoft Teams to connect to any phone, anywhere, with Teams connectivity to the PSTN (Public Switched Telephone Network).

With remote and hybrid work models now the new norm in today’s digitally driven world, effective business communication has never been more critical. Forrester has found that collaboration platforms that allow your team to work together remotely drive a 10% increase in productivity, saving your employees 2-4 hours per 40-hour work week.

Old phone systems lack integration and softphone software options that enable an Internet-connected device, such as a computer, to make phone calls. As a result, old line-based phones cannot support hybrid working environments where people make “calls” to collaborate directly from their computers. Forward-thinking businesses understand the importance of convenience, context, and speed of communications and are largely utilizing Microsoft Teams.

Microsoft Teams is a commonly used collaboration application built for hybrid work so that teams can stay informed, organized, and connected – all in one place. However, as remote and mobile workforces increase, so does the need to integrate voice calling capabilities to make regular and emergency calls, receive calls, transfer calls, and mute/unmute calls, all through Microsoft Teams. Workforces need the ability to make calls to anyone, not just those who have Microsoft Teams.

One option is to purchase the Microsoft Teams Phone Calling add-on, which integrates voice calling capabilities through the PSTN. However, this can be costly and may result in limited reach and compromised call quality as voice services are not a core Microsoft product.

Another option would be to purchase calling from a Carrier for Teams Voice integration. However, voice communications through Tier 2 or Tier 3 type Carriers mean you’re going through two or three different types of infrastructures to complete the call, which causes delays that could be as high as 250 milliseconds or even higher along with compromised quality. Without the right Microsoft Teams Phone System integration, businesses can also experience missed messages and missed calls, impacting a company’s bottom line.

Lightpath is helping to solve this with the Teams Direct Routing solution. By providing direct routing through Lightpath Internet, customers can use their Microsoft Teams Phone System to initiate or terminate calls directly to/from the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN). The integration allows a company to gain a more cost-effective and reliable ‘single pane’ for all business communications with less delay, less jitter, and clearer voice audio.

Lightpath Direct Routing uses Lightpath session border controllers (SBCs) and SIP Trunking services to connect Teams to the PSTN.

Benefits include:

• Faster migration to Teams. Maintain control of your phone numbers and reduce complexity by eliminating the need to port phone numbers to Microsoft.
• Easily add Direct Routing without going to another provider (for existing Lightpath customers).
• Reduce costs. Take advantage of Lightpath's competitive calling plans and unlimited US domestic minutes. Microsoft's Calling Plans can be unpredictable. The minutes' bundles are costly with no unlimited options. Plus, software-driven solutions mean your business will also save on hardware costs. You no longer have to buy a desk phone for everyone.
• Minimize disruptions. Continued Lightpath support of existing on-premises PBXs during transition avoids waiting until the current SIP/PSTN contract expires before making the transition to Teams.

Calls made using your Teams softphone go over the Internet to the Microsoft Cloud PBX. The encrypted traffic is then sent over the Internet to our Perimeta SBC via a Logical SIP Trunk and then to the PSTN via the Lightpath network.

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With over 30+ years in the voice business, Lightpath has the contacts and infrastructure in place that enable us to offer a better solution with better pricing to meet the needs of businesses today. To learn more about how your organization can benefit from Lightpath Teams Direct Routing, call 877-544-4872. To learn more about Lightpath, visit lightpathfiber.com.