Cisco Meeting Server vs Skype for Business comparison

Cisco and Microsoft are both solutions in the Virtual Meetings category. Cisco is ranked #7 with an average rating of 9.0, while Microsoft is ranked #3 with an average rating of 7.9. Cisco holds a 8.8% mindshare in VM, compared to Microsoft’s 10.4% mindshare. Additionally, 80% of Cisco users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 79% of Microsoft users who would recommend it.

Cisco Meeting Server

Read 5 Cisco Meeting Server reviews

853 Views
688 Comparison Views

80% willing to recommend

Skype for Business

Read 62 Skype for Business reviews

2,382 Views
871 Comparison Views

79% willing to recommend

Cisco Meeting Server

Skype for Business

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Cisco Meeting Server and Skype for Business based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out in this report how the two Virtual Meetings solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI.

To learn more, read our detailed Cisco Meeting Server vs. Skype for Business Report (Updated: January 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Meeting Server vs. Skype for Business

January 2025

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Helped 831,158 peers since 2012

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Categories and Ranking

Cisco Meeting Server

Ranking in Virtual Meetings

7th

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.5

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Skype for Business

Ranking in Virtual Meetings

3rd

Average Rating

7.8

Reviews Sentiment

7.7

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2025, in the Virtual Meetings category, the mindshare of Cisco Meeting Server is 8.8%, up from 6.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Skype for Business is 10.4%, up from 8.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Virtual Meetings

Featured Reviews

Ahmed Elrayes

Voice Network Engineer at Raya Integration

A scalable tool useful to hold conferences and video meetings

I use Cisco Meeting Server for conferences and video meetings, which are crucial for my company The share screen option available during conferences is one of the best features of Cisco Meeting Server. In Cisco Meeting Server, GUI is an area of concern where improvements are required. In the…

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Magdalena Teodorczuk

Senior at Krajowy Depozyt Papierów Wartosciowych S.A.

Offers great audio and video quality for virtual meetings

I like the instant messaging feature in the product since I prefer to use the chat functionalities provided by the solution. It is easy to integrate the product with some of the other solutions in the market. I rate the integration capabilities of the product a ten out of ten. The product's user interface is user-friendly. I use the product at a personal level, so I can't speak about the support it provides for the maintenance part. I rate the overall tool a ten out of ten.

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Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Pros

"The share screen option available during conferences is one of the best features of Cisco Meeting Server."

"The UI is user-friendly and very good overall."

"What I like most about Cisco Meeting Server is its quick management. The solution also has a straightforward configuration."

"You can use the Cisco Meeting Server to set up conference calls and virtual meetings. Those are the two primary functions of Meeting Server. Most people in the company are using Microsoft Teams, so we only use Meeting Server when we have an internal meeting for all staff."

"Cisco Meeting Server is an easy and less complex solution."

"It's a good and stable product that fits my needs."

"Our employees use this solution for a communal space to collaborate for organizational decision making."

"It's a good product, we like using it."

"The Microsoft tech support are very good. They get back to you. I log a support call, and I usually have someone on the phone within a half an hour, so it is pretty good."

"People are now able to virtually collaborate with their staff and have a conference call. We don't need a phone line to make that conference call and we are saving on that. People are able to share their presentations. Also, they can chat using the Skype"

"Skype for Business is good for meetings and instant messaging."

"Desktop sharing is a valuable feature."

"Scalability-wise, I rate the solution a nine out of ten...Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten."

More Skype for Business pros

Cons

"Cisco Meeting Server should include a feature to control another user's screen during a remote session."

"What would make Cisco Meeting Server better is integrating it with Zoom and Teams so that you can connect or make a call through any of the two third-party solutions."

"This is a difficult solution to install and it should be made easier."

"In Cisco Meeting Server, GUI is an area of concern where improvements are required."

"A few features are missing on the Meetings app, like a recording function. My understanding is that you need to buy a separate recording solution. It's modular, so you have to enable some functions if you want to use them. For example, we had to enable the Mood function. Recording is the primary feature we'd like to see in the app."

"We are looking for a more collaborative tool, not only in terms of virtual meetings but also for teams to collaborate, share a document, work together, and all those types of things."

"Going forward, I would like to see better call quality and reliability."

"I feel bored with the look and feel of the tool, so it should be changed."

"Skype for Business could improve by having a document channel or repository. Microsoft Teams has a better repository place for documents that you can share with your team. You can access it anywhere from any device."

"We overcame the audio quality issues by asking users to use the 'Call Me' feature with their desk phone."

"It would be ideal if the solution could make instant messages more permanent. Currently, if you close the conversation, you lose the instant messages that you shared during the meeting. If those could last beyond the meeting, that would be a great addition, due to the fact that frequently, people give each other key details, important information, or email addresses, etc., during the meeting. If you don't write it down during the meeting, after the meeting closes, it's gone forever. That can be quite frustrating."

"There are issues with the bandwidth, particularly for external meetings,"

"The initial setup could be simplified."

More Skype for Business cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Cisco Meeting Server has reasonable licensing costs."

"Price-wise, Cisco Meeting Server is a product that falls in a mid-range category."

"Licensing fees are billed yearly."

"When it comes to the pricing of the solution, I rate it as a five out of ten. It falls somewhere in the middle between being cheap and expensive."

"Our company pays for a license for us to use the solution."

"Skype for Business' pricing is reasonable."

"We are using the subscription-based version of Skype for Business. There is a free version of the solution."

"I use the product's open-source version."

"We have been able to save money by moving our conferencing solution to Skype for Business Conferencing."

"The pricing is really good. It is quite affordable because it came with our Office 365. It is on a per-user license, which is nice. I quite like that they have made it very granular with all of their licensing."

"To realize value from the purchase of Skype Business, you need to take advantage of all the important functions of the program."

More Skype for Business pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

25%

Government

14%

Manufacturing Company

12%

Financial Services Firm

11%

Educational Organization

92%

Financial Services Firm

Government

Computer Software Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Cisco Meeting Server?

Cisco Meeting Server is an easy and less complex solution.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco Meeting Server?

Price-wise, Cisco Meeting Server is a product that falls in a mid-range category.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Cisco Meeting Server?

Cisco Meeting Server should include a feature to control another user's screen during a remote session.

See all answers

What do you like most about Skype for Business?

The solution’s video quality is fine.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Skype for Business?

Skype for Business is affordable and has decent pricing. The video quality is a bit lower than Teams or Zoom, but it remains a good solution overall.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Skype for Business?

The video quality could be improved, possibly due to internet connection issues. However, there is no significant weakness in Skype for Business.

See all answers

Comparisons

Webex vs Cisco Meeting Server

Compared 47% of the time

Pexip vs Cisco Meeting Server

Compared 23% of the time

Polycom RealPresence Clariti vs Cisco Meeting Server

Compared 7% of the time

Zoom vs Cisco Meeting Server

Compared 6% of the time

Huawei Video Conferencing Platform vs Cisco Meeting Server

Compared 6% of the time

More Cisco Meeting Server Competitors

Webex vs Skype for Business

Compared 29% of the time

Cisco Unified Communications vs Skype for Business

Compared 22% of the time

TeamViewer vs Skype for Business

Compared 16% of the time

Zoom vs Skype for Business

Compared 14% of the time

BlueJeans Meetings vs Skype for Business

Compared 3% of the time

More Skype for Business Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Virtual Meetings

December 2024

Download Cisco Meeting Server product report

Buyer's Guide

Skype for Business

December 2024

Download Skype for Business product report

Also Known As

Acano

Skype for Business Plan 1, Skype for Business Plan 2, Lync Server

Learn More

Cisco

Microsoft

Overview

Cisco Meeting Server brings premises-based video, audio, and web communication together to meet the collaboration needs of the modern workplace. It works with third-party devices, and provides an enjoyable and intuitive user experience. It also scales easily, and can be purchased using our all-in-one, user-based multiparty licensing offer.

Skype for Business offers features including presence, IM, voice and video calls, online meetings, conferencing, and telephony solutions that support enterprise-level collaboration requirements. Skype for Business Record meetings, share your screen, and annotate PowerPoint for real-time collaboration with up to 250 people and use whiteboard, polls, Q&A, and built-in IM during your business meetings to make them more productive. Skype for Business provides new client experience, Skype for Business Server provides several new features to improve manageability of on-premises servers and hybrid solutions. Skype for Business also supports the Lync client experience so that you can choose a phased upgrade approach to the new client experience for users. Skype for Business is also an integral part of Microsoft Office 365, providing PSTN Conferencing, Cloud PBX, PSTN Calling, and Skype Meeting Broadcast capabilities to Office 365 users.

Sample Customers

Starz

EmpireCLS Worldwide Chauffeured Services,LA Fitness, MedcoEnergi International, Tampa General Hospital, and HopewellHoldings Limited.

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Meeting Server vs. Skype for Business

January 2025

Free Report: Cisco Meeting Server vs. Skype for Business

Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Meeting Server vs. Skype for Business and other solutions. Updated: January 2025.

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We monitor all Virtual Meetings reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.