The top 10 Microsoft Teams Updates from 2025 so far that Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Teams service owners must know about.
With these 10 critical Message Center items fundamentally reshaping how organisations manage devices, enhance accessibility and implement security controls in 2025 already, the state of Microsoft Teams is certainly one of rapid innovation and development.
These changes range from mandatory device migrations requiring immediate action to innovative features that position Teams as a comprehensive workplace platform, marking a pivotal shift from a basic communication tool to an enterprise-grade collaboration ecosystem.
MC1066333 - Classic Teams End of Availability by 1st July
The cutover to New Teams happened last year, however that wasn’t the end of Classic Teams for good; now it is.
From 1st July, Classic Teams was terminated, blocking access to the app. Users cannot now dismiss the blocking message or use the classic Teams app. Note, this message only went to tenants whereby users were still using classic Teams, so if this message was in your Message Center feed, it means action was required to help users to upgrade to the new Teams
A script was available for admins to identify devices that required the upgrade and to check for unsupported operating systems.
MC920179 - New Teams combined chat and channels experience under the Chat sidebar icon
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One of the most significant updates to Microsoft Teams since its launch has been the new chat and channels experience.
The Microsoft Teams experience was streamlined to offer a combined chat and channels interface, providing users with a more unified experience. Custom sections and favourites enable users to personalise their experience and with enhanced filtering options, users can triage their messages with persistent filters for unread messages and @ mentions.
This update became generally available in late February 2025 and applied to Teams on Windows desktops, Mac desktops, the web and iOS and Android devices. Note, that Education tenants were excluded from this specific message, but a future post detailed plans for Education tenants.
No admin action was required to turn this feature on or off – it was on by default with no admin control, having a high impact on users. Admins should, however, have communicated this change with users in advance in order to prepare them for the change in interface and to reduce the number of support tickets raised because of this change.
MC1048628 - Provide a meaningful name to the first channel of the team
The death of the General channel in Teams in MC814583 sparked uproar from many, and as a result, was later revoked.
Back in August 2024, Microsoft introduced the ability for team owners to rename the General channel in Microsoft teams. However, a restriction was added preventing the first channel in a new team being called ‘General’. This caused havoc for IT departments as they were faced with users reporting issues when they attempted to create a new team.
This was due to template and workflows that had previously been created to automate the creation process not complying with the fact that the first channel could not be called ‘General’. As a result, the process failed, and much service disruption occurred.
After user feedback, the General channel was revived in May of this year. Microsoft updated the change so that the first channel of a team can be called ‘General’ with no restrictions, and it can still be renamed. This update made naming the first channel of teams more flexible for Team owners, improving user experience in Microsoft Teams.
MC1066157 - Android Open-Source Project (AOSP) - Teams device auto updates
One of the most critical Teams infrastructure changes of 2025 so far has been the mandatory migration from Android Device Administrator to Android Open-Source Project (AOSP) management.
Beginning in May of this year, all Teams Android devices automatically migrated to AOSP management including Teams Rooms, Panels, Displays, and IP Phones, with Microsoft explicitly stating that ‘there will be no exception to delay the auto updates further.’
The business impact extends beyond technical reconfiguration. Improperly prepared organisations would have experienced immediate device disruptions, including device sign-outs and loss of management capabilities and potentially impacting meeting room functionality and Teams Phone operations.
MC1052912 - Microsoft Teams - Copilot Summary for Transferred Calls
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Copilot is impacting most areas of Microsoft 365 and Teams is no exception. The integration of Microsoft 365 Copilot with call transfer workflows enables users to share AI-generated call summaries during call transfers, ensuring complete context handoff between team members. Recipients receive call context through toast notifications, eliminating the need for verbal context explanations during handoff.
Organisations benefit from improved customer experience through better context transfer, enhanced productivity through reduced explanation time and knowledge continuity during call escalations. This feature will be particularly useful for customer support scenarios, sales hand-overs, and technical support.
MC1047923 - Versions of the new Teams client older than 90 days will be blocked
Microsoft’s implementation of the 90-day client blocking policy represents a fundamental shift in how Teams enforces security updates.
Since April 2025, for Windows users, any Teams desktop client older than 90 days becomes completely non-functional, with Mac and VDI environments following a month later. Users will receive a 60-day warning banner prior to being blocked, or 30 days for environments, but administrators should ensure that Teams is set to automatically update and check configurations for updates.
This change eliminates the security risk posed by outdated clients but simultaneously creating the potential for service disruption for organisations with restrictive update policies.
MC1088725 - Inclusive meeting enhancements for sign language users
The introduction of Sign Language Mode in Microsoft Teams is a significant accessibility advancement. Rolling out in mid-July 2025, interpreters will be clearly identifiable in the participant roster and visually distinguished during meetings. Deaf and hard-of-hearing participants using sign language will be elevated to active speaker status for equal prominence with audio participants.
This enhancement positions Teams as the most accessible enterprise communication platform while requiring zero administrative configuration. Organisations benefit from an improved ADA compliance posture and enhanced meeting effectiveness for deaf and hard-of-hearing employees without additional licensing costs or complex setup procedures.
MC912707 - New policy for voice and face enrolment will default to "On" (configure now)
The transition to automatic voice and face enrolment possibly represents Microsoft’s most controversial policy change of 2025. Voice and face enrolment in Teams creates a profile for each participant in Teams meetings and enhances audio quality, reduces background noise and enables speaker identification in meetings through voice and face recognition.
Beginning mid-March 2025, all Teams users had voice and face enrolment enabled by default, requiring organisations to actively configure the new csTeamsAIPolicy via PowerShell to disable the feature.
This change raised fundamental privacy and compliance questions. One example where this change had some unintended consequences is the NSW Education Department, where automatic enrolment resulted in unintended collection of student biometric data for a month before discovery, demonstrating the importance of staying on top of changes and knowing the implications of such changes for compliance and security.
MC989973 - Ad-hoc individual desk booking in Teams (Premium) - Microsoft Places
Teams Premium’s introduction of individual desk booking capabilities represents a fundamental shift from basic room scheduling to comprehensive workplace management. Users can now book specific individual desks rather than just desk pools, supporting hybrid work scenarios with enhanced flexibility.
Organisations benefit from enhanced workspace flexibility, better space utilisation analytics and improved user experience through seamless desk booking workflows, although an extra cost is incurred through the requirement of Teams Premium licensing.
MC1066937 - New Queues app service plan (Teams Premium)
Another major change which came at the end of 2024 was the release of Microsoft Teams Queues App. Further to this, the Queues app service plan has now been integrated into Teams Premium, which demonstrates Microsoft’s commitment to transforming Teams into a comprehensive customer engagement platform.
The collaborative call handing system enables real-time queue management, agent availability controls and comprehensive analytics. Users require both Teams Premium and Teams Phone licenses.
Organisations benefit from cost-efficient customer call management, improved customer experience through collaborative call handling, and enhanced productivity through integrated Teams workflows. The service plan includes delegated administration capabilities, allowing business owners to manage day-to-day operations while reducing IT administrative burden.
Lessons Learnt from the Microsoft Teams Innovations in 2025 So Far
These 10 Microsoft Teams changes are examples of just some of the tremendous innovation and development that has occurred in Microsoft Teams this year so far, many of which require comprehensive change management strategies and substantial organisational preparation. The combination of mandatory security updates, privacy policy changes, and premium feature enhancements demands a coordinated approach to implementation and user adoption.
Organisations that successfully navigate these changes will benefit from:
- Enhanced security posture
- Improved accessibility compliance
- Advanced collaboration capabilities
Those that fail to prepare adequately will face operational disruptions, compliance challenges and missed opportunities for workplace transformation through integrated communication and collaboration platforms.
Companies require robust frameworks for tracking, evaluating, and controlling these developments, particularly when they impact critical functions such as biometric information processing, which carries significant implications for data protection, security protocols, and compliance obligations.
ChangePilot delivers the comprehensive approach organisations require to proactively manage Microsoft 365 transformations and prevent operational disruptions. Through our proven methodology, your business can safeguard against becoming a cautionary tale of an enterprise that suffered reputational damage due to unforeseen data handling issues or privacy violations stemming from Microsoft's rapidly evolving platform updates.
To learn more about ChangePilot's capabilities and discover how we can help your organisation maintain control over Microsoft 365 developments, explore our product offerings or reach out to schedule a consultation with our change specialists.
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