Introducing Microsoft Teams Town Halls and Discontinuing Microsoft Teams Live Events

Microsoft has recently announced the introduction of 'Town Hall' in Microsoft Teams, set to replace Teams Live Events, for its commercial customers by October 5, 2023. The move envisions a more unified experience for hosting various internal as well as external events. It incorporates advanced production capabilities and engagement techniques to maximize participation and maintain attention. Some of the notable features of Town Hall include attendee capacity, event concurrency, duration, presenters’ green room, and on-demand recording. Attendee reporting, live translated captions, and customization of email communications are additional features that promise a rich event experience.

In addition to the rollout of the Town Hall, Microsoft has also announced the retirement of Teams Live Events by September 30, 2024. Commercial customers have been given a 12-month window to prepare for this shift and access existing recordings. The Teams Live Events platform for commercial customers will continue to function without changes until its retirement.

Support for further functionalities such as event roles like co-organisers and presenters, external presenter access, and integration with Viva Engage will be included over the coming months. As and when these features roll out, there will be customer notifications.

• Attendee Capacity: 

  • Office and Microsoft 365's Town hall: 10,000 attendees

  • Teams Premium: up to 20,000 attendees

• Event Concurrency: 

  • Office/Microsoft 365: 15 simultaneous events 

  • Teams Premium: 50 events

• Event Duration: Matches the standard Teams meeting duration – up to 30 hours.

• eCDN Support: 

  • Support for both third-party eCDN providers 

  • Microsoft's first-party eCDN (only in Teams Premium)

• Green Room: A virtual space where presenters can prepare separately from attendees.

• Attendee Management: 

  • Organizers control what attendees see 

  • Can show up to seven presenters on-screen

• Participant Privacy: 

  • Only organizers see the participant list 

  • Attendees' cameras and microphones are off by default

• RTMP-in & RTMP-out: 

  • Integration with external encoders for custom media feeds 

  • Streaming to other platforms

• Structured Q&A: 

  • Enhanced moderation tools 

  • Supports up to 20,000 attendees in Teams Premium

• On-demand Recording: 

  • Recordings accessible post-event from within the Town Hall interface

• Email Communications: 

  • Pre-configured email templates 

  • Customization options in Teams Premium

• Attendee Reporting: 

  • Insights on attendee numbers, join/leave times, and more

• Live Translated Captions: 

  • Support for multiple languages in captions 

  • More languages to be added later

Notable Differences from Teams Live Events at Launch:

• Different event roles, with a new set of roles for Town Halls
• Inclusion of external presenters launching end of October
• DVR capabilities to be added in future updates
• Integration with Viva Engage coming in the next months

Read the full article Introducing Town Halls in Microsoft Teams and Retiring Microsoft Teams Live Events

Further Insights into Microsoft Teams' Town Hall Functionality

Town Hall in Microsoft Teams is set to revolutionize hosting and delivering large-scale digital events. Microsoft, with this platform, seeks to facilitate better connection across global teams and maximize reach. Features like real-time usage analytics, customized email communication, live translated captions, etc., increase the platform's dynamicity and engagement level.

Town Hall will prominently replace the existing Teams Live Events for customers on Office and Microsoft 365 offerings, as well as those on Teams Premium. The high-anticipated features are likely to streamline event hosting across organizations, making internal and external communication effortless.

Overall, Town Hall is anticipated to offer significant value to organizations and businesses in terms of cost-efficiency, flexibility, and interactive communication capabilities. Microsoft’s consistent dedication to providing efficient and all-encompassing features is in line with their commitment to promote effective virtual collaboration.

• One-to-many format and structured engagement techniques ensure effective interaction.
• Support for ongoing release of features promises full feature parity with Teams Live Events.
• Organizers' access to real-time, event usage information allows better management.
• The advanced features and integrations planned for future release promise to keep the platform up-to-date and dynamic.
• Microsoft is dedicated to delivering continual innovation for richer and more engaging event experiences.