Web Conferences in Microsoft Teams: Meetings
In Microsoft Teams, web conferences are referred to as "Meetings." A meeting can support up to 1,000 participants in full interaction—such as audio, video, chat, presentations, and collaborative content editing.Participants exceeding the 1,000 limit, up to a maximum of 20,000, can only join as viewers. They cannot interact via audio or video but can only watch and listen to the content.
Meeting Flow
Note: A meeting URL remains permanently active and functions independently of the meeting's scheduled end time. The expiration refers solely to phone dial-in numbers and the underlying meeting policies and settings.| Meeting Type | Meeting Expires After | Extension Upon Restart or Update |
| Instant Meeting | Start time + 8 hours | Not applicable |
| Regular, No End Time | Start time + 60 days | 60 days |
| Regular, With End Time | End time + 60 days | 60 days |
| Recurring, No End Time | Start time + 60 days | 60 days |
| Recurring, With End Time | End time of last occurrence + 60 days | 60 days |
Meeting Templates
There are various types of meetings in Teams: regular meetings, live events, webinars, lectures, and classes. Each template is tailored to specific use cases.Live Event
With Microsoft Teams Live Events, users in your organization can broadcast video and meeting content to a large online audience. This feature is especially suitable for events such as product launches, corporate conferences, or training sessions with thousands of viewers.Source: <https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoftteams/teams-live-events/what-are-teams-live-events>
Webinar
Unlike regular meetings, which allow a high degree of interaction among participants—such as discussions, task assignments, or collaborative planning—webinars are more structured and controlled.In webinars, participants have clearly defined roles: one or more moderators (experts) present content, while attendees primarily act as viewers. They can ask questions, but interaction is limited to the moderators.
Source: <https://support.microsoft.com/de-de/office/erste-schritte-mit-teams-webinaren-42f3f874-22dc-4289-b53f-bbc1a69013e3>
Lecture
In a lecture, participants can communicate in the chat before and after the meeting. During the meeting, interaction is limited to keep the focus on the presentation.Class
In class mode, the chat function is only active during the meeting. After the session ends, the chat is no longer accessible.Planning Meetings
Through Outlook (Requirement: Teams client is installed and running)In Outlook Calendar: Calendar → "Appointment Meeting" tab → New Teams Meeting
- A meeting link is automatically generated.
- Participants can be invited just like a regular Outlook appointment.
- All meeting data—including recordings, whiteboard, and chat history—is automatically saved to the organizer's personal OneDrive.
- Instant Meeting → Meeting starts immediately.
- New Meeting / Schedule Meeting → Standard meeting with scheduling options.
- Webinar → Up to 1,000 participants, controlled interaction.
- Live Event → Up to 20,000 participants, streaming broadcast.
- Participants must be added manually.
- All meeting data—including whiteboard, chat history, and recordings—is saved to the organizer's personal OneDrive.
Meeting Options
- Co-organizers can only be added after saving the appointment.
- Who can present?
- Warning: Any participant with presentation rights can record the meeting and admit people from the waiting room into the meeting.
- Options in the red rectangle are currently a Microsoft preview and are available only in limited capacity:
- End-to-end encryption
- Maximum 50 participants
- No recording functionality available