Microsoft Teams is the dominant enterprise collaboration platform globally, and its telephony capabilities — through Teams Phone — have grown to over 26 million users worldwide. For South African businesses and telecoms resellers, Teams represents both a competitive threat and a significant opportunity. Teams Phone is available in South Africa through multiple PSTN connectivity options, and Copilot AI integration is adding intelligent capabilities to calling and meeting workflows.
Teams Phone PSTN Options for South Africa
Microsoft provides three approaches for connecting Teams Phone to the public telephone network in South Africa:
Microsoft Calling Plans: South Africa is included in Microsoft’s Domestic Calling Plans, allowing organisations to purchase call minutes directly from Microsoft. This is the simplest option but offers less flexibility in carrier selection and call routing.
Operator Connect: Microsoft-certified telecom operators provide PSTN connectivity that is activated directly from the Teams Admin Center. South Africa is supported, and this option allows businesses to work with local operators while benefiting from Microsoft’s integrated management.
Direct Routing: Organisations connect their own SBC (Session Border Controller) to Teams Phone, enabling PSTN connectivity through any SIP trunk provider. This is the most flexible option and is commonly used by South African businesses working with local VoIP providers.
Copilot for Teams Phone
Microsoft Copilot integration with Teams Phone uses AI to generate post-call summaries, identify action items, and provide contextual insights from voice conversations. Copilot requires a separate Microsoft 365 Copilot licence. Live translation during one-on-one VoIP and PSTN calls is expected in early 2026, adding real-time language translation to Teams calling.
Why SA Resellers Should Understand Teams
Microsoft Teams is reshaping the South African UC market. Many enterprises that adopted Teams for messaging and meetings during the pandemic are now considering Teams Phone for calling, potentially displacing traditional PBX systems. For resellers, this creates both a threat and an opportunity.
The threat is that Teams Phone, particularly with Microsoft Calling Plans, can bypass independent telecoms providers entirely. The opportunity lies in Direct Routing and Operator Connect, which require SBC infrastructure, SIP trunking, and ongoing management — services that resellers can provide. AudioCodes, Ribbon, and other SBC vendors are key technology partners for Teams Direct Routing deployments.
Understanding Teams Phone’s capabilities, licensing model, and PSTN connectivity options is essential for any South African telecoms reseller, whether they are integrating with Teams or competing against it.
More information is available at microsoft.com/microsoft-teams.
About the Author
Mechelle Gindra
Mechelle Gindra is the managing editor and lead content strategist at Telecoms-Channel, South Africa's dedicated intelligence platform for telecoms resellers, ICT distributors, and channel partners. She oversees the editorial team's AI-assisted content production pipeline, ensuring vendor news, market analysis, and regulatory updates are accurate, timely, and actionable for the SA telecoms channel community. With deep expertise in the South African telecoms reseller ecosystem, Mechelle directs coverage of vendor partner programmes, ICASA regulatory developments, wholesale market dynamics, and channel business strategy. She is responsible for maintaining Telecoms-Channel's editorial standards, fact-checking processes, and corrections policy.
