I’ve just wrapped up ITEXPO, and like every year, I left energized, not just by the technology innovation on display, but by the very real business outcomes taking shape across our industry. This year’s ITEXPO agenda made one thing clear, Trust, Identity, and AI are converging, and monetization is following close behind. I attended a bunch of sessions, but the following one really caught my attention:
vCon & SCITT — Trusted Conversations in the AI Era
This session was led by telecom visionary Jeff Pulver, Joining Jeff were Thomas McCarthy-Howe of vConic and Alan Quayle @ TADhack — three leaders deeply involved in programmable communications, conversational intelligence, and industry standards development.
Key Concept: Conversations Become Trusted Data
The discussion centered on two emerging frameworks:
- vCon (Virtualized Conversations) Structuring conversations into secure, portable data objects
- SCITT (Supply Chain Integrity, Transparency, and Trust) Ensuring verifiability and provenance of digital assets.
In an AI era where machines act on human conversations, trust becomes foundational.
If AI is summarizing calls, automating workflows, triggering transactions, then those conversations must be:
- Verifiable
- Tamper-evident
- Auditable
- Secure
As a charter member of the vCon Foundation, this is strategically important for us at Crexendo and across the NetSapiens ecosystem.
Service providers are moving beyond delivering voice transport — toward enabling:
- Conversational intelligence
- Compliance automation
- AI-driven customer insights
- Outcome-based service packaging
We are witnessing the evolution of: Voice → Data → Intelligence → Monetization.
Jeff’s long-standing vision of voice experiencing a renaissance is now being realized, fueled by AI and structured conversation frameworks like vCon.
I was also on one of the most engaging panel sessions around Next-Gen Messaging & Identity — Restoring Trust in Communications
This was alongside Marcelo Frizzo — Head of Operator Partnerships NA, Infobip & Scott Navratil — CRO, Commio.
The Core Industry Challenge
We confronted an uncomfortable reality that the telecom industry has trained consumers to distrust inbound communications all driven by Spam calls, Fraud, Smishing, Robocalling. Consumers ignore phone calls and text messages at unprecedented rates.
This has created both:
- A trust crisis
- A monetization opportunity
Enter RCS and Verified Identity
Rich Communication Services (RCS), branded calling, and verified sender frameworks are rebuilding trust layers inside native mobile experiences.
These capabilities enable enterprises to deliver:
- Verified brand identity.
- Logo and business profiles
- Rich media messaging
- Carousels and interactive content
- Embedded next step actions.
- Conversational commerce experiences
This transforms messaging from static alerts into app-like engagement channels.
Some of the Headwinds vs. Tailwinds brought up were:
Headwinds:
- Tier 1 carrier rollout pace
- Commercial model alignment
- Interoperability complexity
Tailwinds:
- Enterprise demand for engagement
- Regulatory pressure for identity validation
- Consumer preference for verified brands.
- AI integration with messaging workflows
The consensus across the panel:
Demand is outpacing deployment — creating opportunities for MSPs and service providers to lead.
Providers who package trusted messaging, branded calling, and CPaaS engagement services can step in as the “white knight” restoring trust in business communications.
I wonder will the MSP’s look the gift horse in the mouth or take this huge opportunity, because if they don’t, the CPaaS providers might do an end-around to their end-users, the opportunity is that big.
The last session that caught my attention was: Monetizing UCaaS & CCaaS in the Age of AI and Collaboration Hubs
I closed out my event attending a panel featuring Crexendo CRO Jon Brinton, Alon Cohen — CTO, Phone.com, Kartik Khambhati — Co-founder & CBDO and Hodusoft and the titan in our industry Rich Tehrani — CEO, TMC as the host, and last but not least our partner and super knowledgeable Matt Siemens, CEO of NUSO.
The Platform Shift
With collaboration platforms like Microsoft Teams and Zoom owning the user interface, service providers are being pushed to innovate above the dial tone.
Monetization is no longer driven by:
- Seats
- Minutes
- Basic voice services
Instead, revenue growth is shifting toward:
- AI applications
- Contact center intelligence.
- Workflow automation
- Vertical solutions
- Embedded communications
The New Monetization Stack
We discussed how providers are packaging higher-value services such as:
- AI receptionists
- Conversational analytics
- Intelligent routing
- Workforce optimization
- Customer journey orchestration
This reflects a broader transformation:
From UCaaS → to Experience-as-a-Service
And critically and most importantly Service Providers can still own the customer relationship, even when operating inside Teams or Zoom ecosystems.
The Macro Theme: Innovation Driving Measurable Outcomes
Across every session, the same energy was palpable:
Relentless innovation — anchored in business results.
We are entering a new era where communications platforms are measured not by features, but by outcomes:
- Trusted conversations enabling AI action.
- Verified identity restoring engagement.
- Rich messaging driving conversion
- AI augmenting margins
- Platforms enabling ecosystem monetization.
Communication is no longer just infrastructure.
It is becoming:
- An intelligence layer.
- A trust layer.
- n experience layer.
Final Takeaway
If I had to summarize ITEXPO 2026 in one line:
The future of communications isn’t just connected — it’s verified, intelligent, and monetizable.
From vCon-powered trusted conversation frameworks, to RCS-driven branded engagement, and AI-augmented UCaaS and CCaaS monetization…
Innovation is happening on multiple fronts and accelerating fast.
For service providers willing to embrace identity, AI, and experience-driven services…
The opportunity ahead is enormous.
