After considering a possible acquisition of Slack Technologies Inc. in March for a reported $8 billion, Microsoft decided to focus on its own product Skype and create a competitor to the enterprise collaboration service. According to MSPoweruser, Microsoft has done just that with the news that the company is reportedly working on Skype Teams, which will take on Slack in the team messaging app market.

According to people familiar with the matter, Microsoft’s answer to Slack will work in a very similar way to the established service, but with one feature that could make it very enticing for enterprises. Skype Teams will launch on both the web and on mobile with versions available for Android, iOS, and Windows Phone.

Rumored features of Skype Teams

Same ‘channels’ and Direct Messages, with additional Thread Conversations

Like Slack, Skype Teams will allow team members to send messages in ‘channels’, that relate to a specific group or team, as well as Direct Messages to specific team members.

However, unlike Slack, Skype Teams will also allow for Threaded Conversations. Similar to Facebook comments, Threaded Conversations in Skype Teams will allow you to reply to a specific message by clicking the reply button while the thread remains open to other members to also reply.  

Make video calls and schedule online meetings

Microsoft is also rumored to bring some of Skype’s core features into its enterprise collaboration service, and will allow users to make videos calls either on a 1-on-1 basis or within a team channel.

In addition, Skype Teams will also allow teams to schedule online meetings. Scheduled meetings can then be found under the Meetings tab in Skype Teams.

Bots

Within Slack Teams, users will be able to share files, notes, and more. When Skype Teams officially launches we could also see the inclusion of bots from Microsoft’s Bot Framework.

Office 365 integration

For enterprises that use Office 365, Skype Teams are also rumored to include integration of PowerPoint, Word, Excel, etc.

The Fun Picker

To keep things light-hearted, Skype Teams will include a Fun Picker, allowing team members to easily share emojis, GIFs from Giphy, Memes, and more.

With its integration with Office 365, Microsoft’s Skype Teams could prove popular with enterprises when it launches. However, Slack has made a name for itself with 3 million users and an evaluation of $3.8 billion. Watch theCUBE interview below, from the SiliconANGLE Media team, with Keith Adams, chief architect at Slack, as he discusses how Slack is more than a communication tool and how the team is looking to make it “better the more you use it.”

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