Microsoft to allow businesses to charge customers in Teams

Microsoft is set to trial a Teams-based payment system, initially in North America and Canada.

Supported by PayPal, Stripe, and GoDaddy, the Teams Payments app will allow a business to collect payments – for example, for a consultation – directly in a Teams meeting with a customer.

Currently, the app is in public preview in the Teams Store for Teams Essentials, and Microsoft 365 business users will be able to receive payments for no charge.

Microsoft product marketing leader Alberto Martinez Interiano said in a blog post the app is designed to support “any meeting you host in Teams”.

“For example, a lawyer or financial advisor can collect payments for consultative appointments, a real estate instructor can do the same for license-renewal sessions, or a teacher for tutoring classes - all while the customer is engaging with them,” Martinez said.

The app lets users create payment requests in their meetings, and customers can make payment with a “credit or debit card, digital wallet, and more.”

While Team Payments will work on mobile, for now, the mobile version is limited to a one-on-one meeting between the organiser and a single attendee, and mobile meetings must be set up on a desktop computer for payments to be available.

PayPal and Stripe are supported at launch, with GoDaddy “coming soon”, Microsoft said.