I would like to propose that Proton Meet introduce a native phone calling layer — essentially a privacy-first equivalent of the Phone System central in Microsoft Teams. The goal is simple: make it possible to place and receive real telephone calls (PSTN) directly from within Proton Meet, without ever leaving the Proton ecosystem.

What I Am Proposing

A unified voice communication module embedded in Proton Meet that allows users to:

Make and receive calls to/from regular phone numbers (PSTN) directly from the Proton Meet interface — no separate app, no third-party VoIP provider required.

Maintain a personal and shared contact directory within the Proton ecosystem, consistent across Meet, Mail, and Calendar.

Access a call history log with timestamps, duration, and call notes — all end-to-end encrypted.

Configure voicemail with transcription support, delivered securely to the Proton inbox.

Support call transfer, hold, and forwarding for professional and team environments.

Enable a softphone mode — usable from desktop and mobile, replacing the need for a physical desk phone or a separate business telephony subscription.

Why This Matters

Microsoft Teams succeeded not because of its video meetings — it succeeded because it replaced the desk phone. The moment organisations could call external parties, suppliers, and clients directly from Teams, the case for a separate telephony system collapsed.

Proton is following a similar trajectory: Mail, Calendar, Drive, VPN, and now Meet. The missing piece is the phone. For any professional or organisation seriously considering a full migration away from Microsoft 365, the inability to make outbound calls to external numbers remains the single most significant barrier.

Adding PSTN calling to Proton Meet would:

Complete the productivity stack — one encrypted, auditable platform for all communication.

Eliminate the last dependency on Microsoft or Google for business telephony.

Open Proton to regulated industries — legal, financial, and healthcare sectors where call privacy and data residency are non-negotiable requirements.

What Makes This Different from Existing Solutions

Feature

Microsoft Teams Phone

Proposed Proton Meet Phone

End-to-end encryption

❌ (transport only)

✅

PSTN calling

✅

✅ (proposed)

No data monetisation

❌

✅

Call metadata protection

❌

✅

Open-source / auditable

❌

✅

EU data residency

Partial

✅

Technical Path Worth Considering

This does not require Proton to build a global carrier from scratch. A pragmatic approach could be:

Phase 1: SIP/VoIP integration — allow users to connect an existing SIP trunk or VoIP provider, managed securely within Proton Meet.

Phase 2: Proton-native PSTN via carrier partnerships — selected regions first (CH, EU), with number provisioning directly through Proton.

Phase 3: Full softphone feature parity — transfer, hold, voicemail transcription, shared call queues for teams.

The Ask

Proton has already made the case that privacy and professional productivity belong together. The phone is the final frontier. Every organisation that has hesitated to leave Microsoft Teams has done so — at least in part — because of telephony lock-in.

Remove that lock-in, and the migration case becomes overwhelming.

I would be genuinely curious whether others in the community have encountered this barrier, and whether the Proton team has explored PSTN integration on the roadmap.

Submitted by a long-time Proton user and advocate for privacy-first enterprise communication.