MC715693 - Microsoft Teams: Chat for organizers and presenters in Town Hall

Updated September 26,July 10, 2024: We have updated the rollout timeline below. Thank you for your patience.

This new Microsoft Teams feature for Town Hall empowers organizers, presenters, and even external presenters to engage in private discussions before, during, and after their virtual events. This functionality facilitates real-time collaboration, whether prepping pre-event, coordinating seamlessly during presentations, or debriefing post-event, this feature is your ultimate tool for driving impactful and successful virtual events.

On the Town Hall Scheduling form, the event organizer must define their presenters and external presenters for this exclusive group chat to be created. After the event is created, the organizer can access this chat before/after the event from the Town Hall Scheduling form, the Teams Calendar, or the event's Details page. Presenters (and external presenters from guests and federated tenants) can access this chat before/after the event from the Teams Calendar or the event's Details page. This chat will appear in their chat pane. During the event, organizers, presenters, and external presenters (including anonymous presenters) can access this chat from within the in-meeting chat by selecting the tab for Organizers and Presenters.

This message is associated with Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 377303

When this will happen:

Targeted Release: We will begin rolling out mid-NovemberSeptember 2024 (previously mid-September)early August) and expect to complete by late NovemberSeptember 2024 (previously late September)mid-August).

Worldwide: We will begin rolling out early January 2025late September 2024 (previously late September)mid-August) and expect to complete by mid-January 2025October 2024 (previously late August).

How this will affect your organization:

This feature will automatically be available in Microsoft Teams when it is released. When a Town Hall is created with presenters and external presenters defined on the Scheduling form, the chat for organizers and presenters will be created and available to use. 

Image 1: Organizers can automatically send a message to their event's co-organizers and presenters from the Town Hall Scheduling form.

Image 2: Before the Town Hall starts, organizers, co-organizers, and presenters can view this chat on their Chat list and send messages. 

Image 3: During the Town Hall, organizers, co-organizers, and presenters can access the Organizers and Presenters tab and send messages.

What you need to do to prepare:

This feature will automatically be available in Microsoft Teams when it is released. You may want to notify your users about this change and update any relevant documentation as appropriate.