Telecom Reseller / Technology Reseller News

HYANNIS, MA - “We thought messaging was simple—until we realized it could power AI, commerce, and rich customer conversations,” says Inderpal Mumick, CEO, Dotgo. At the inaugural vCon Conference 2025, a rich new layer of the communications future was unveiled through a powerful conversation with Inderpal Mumick, CEO of Dotgo. As a global leader in RCS (Rich Communication Services) platforms, Dotgo is pioneering how businesses interact with consumers, combining messaging, AI, and commerce into a unified, secure experience.

"Dotgo processes more than a billion RCS business messages every month," said Mumick. "RCS modernizes messaging with encryption, rich media, and real branding — transforming the way businesses communicate with consumers."

RCS for Business: Beyond Simple Messaging

While consumers are increasingly familiar with rich messaging through apps like Android Messages and iMessage, RCS for Business elevates the experience further. Instead of generic SMS texts from anonymous numbers, RCS delivers messages verified, branded, and enriched with high-quality images, videos, and interactive carousels — all directly from trusted businesses.

"Instead of a random number, you see 'Target' or your doctor's office name, complete with a verification checkmark," explained Mumick. "It builds trust, delivers better engagement, and supports everything from appointment rescheduling to customer support."

Empowering AI Through RCS

The link between RCS and the AI revolution was a key theme. As enterprises race to integrate AI into customer experiences, they need powerful, reliable communication channels — and RCS fits that need perfectly.

"AI agents can pull rich catalogs, solve customer problems with images, and carry out complex conversations — all seamlessly over RCS," said Mumick. "And because RCS charges per conversation window, not per message, it’s economically sustainable for AI-driven customer support."

Dotgo is actively enabling brands, resellers, hyperscalers, and agencies to incorporate AI into RCS workflows, and is collaborating with Google on multiple education initiatives — including an upcoming event at Google’s New York offices.

vCon and the Structuring of Conversations

Dotgo also sees an important future role for vCon in RCS environments.

"VCon provides a structured, standard format for conversations," noted Mumick. "When we use RCS to communicate and structure it as a VCon, businesses can better mine, analyze, and use that data — with proper consumer consent — to drive AI, improve service, and innovate responsibly."

To learn more about Dotgo and the future of RCS and AI-enabled messaging: dotgo.com

"Cloud is no longer optional. It's a necessity."

Kevin Langford, CaaB, joins Technology Reseller News publisher Doug Green to outline why Managed Service Providers (MSPs) should no longer delay their transition to the cloud—and why CaaB’s MSP-first model offers a better alternative to the big-name hyperscalers.

“The MSPs who embrace cloud now will position themselves for long-term success,” said Langford. “With predictable pricing, white-label branding, and hands-on support, CaaB helps MSPs own their cloud future.”

Built for MSPs, Not Hyperscalers

Unlike hyperscalers that cater to enterprises and developers, CaaB was purpose-built for MSPs. That means:

Flat-rate pricing with no surprises

White-label support that lets MSPs keep their brand front and center

24/7/365 support and dedicated account managers

Structured cloud migrations to reduce complexity and downtime

“The major cloud platforms just weren’t built with MSPs in mind,” said Langford. “We fix that by giving partners what they need most—control, visibility, and profitability.”

Why MSPs Can't Wait

Langford warns that MSPs clinging to on-prem solutions are putting client relationships—and recurring revenue—at risk.

“Cloud services are expected to be a $2 trillion industry in five years. Your clients are moving to the cloud—with or without you.”

He noted that a typical MSP switching to CaaB’s platform saw a 40% boost in recurring revenue within a year—while also gaining customer loyalty due to stronger performance and predictable costs.

Breaking the Myths

For hesitant MSPs, CaaB addresses key fears:

Migration complexity? CaaB helps with the heavy lifting.

Cost uncertainty? The price you see is the price you pay.

Loss of control? CaaB’s white-label model keeps MSPs in the driver’s seat.

“Our platform isn’t just easy to manage. It’s built to help partners grow.”

Learn More

Visit caab.cloud

Follow CaaB on LinkedIn

“Telecom law is a niche, but it’s a powerful one — and it’s about to become even more important in the world of vCons.” — Diana James, Attorney, Marashlian & Donahue, PLLC

At vCon 2025, Diana James Highlights Why Telecom Law Is Key to the Next Era of Communication

Hyannis, MA - April 2025 - Speaking from the vCon Conference in Hyannisport, Massachusetts, Diana James, attorney with Marashlian & Donahue (The CommLaw Group), emphasized how crucial it is to have legal expertise tailored to technology and telecom — especially as new communication formats like vCon emerge.

“Telecom law is a very niche area, and there's a lot to keep track of,” said James. “But it’s incredibly exciting, and it’s becoming even more critical as innovations like vCon reshape how businesses manage, share, and protect conversations.”

Marashlian & Donahue represents clients across the telecom industry, including the Cloud Communications Alliance. James and her colleagues are deeply involved in helping organizations navigate the complex regulatory environment that governs emerging technologies like virtualized conversations.

The vCon standard, which captures and containers conversations (voice, text, video, chat) into structured, portable files, presents vast new opportunities — but also raises important legal questions around data privacy, consent, and regulatory compliance.

“It’s not just about building the technology. It’s about making sure it's implemented ethically and legally,” James noted.

With enterprises and service providers racing to adopt AI, customer intelligence, and new conversational formats, specialized telecom and tech law firms like Marashlian & Donahue are more important than ever — helping innovators stay ahead of regulatory requirements while protecting customer trust.

#vCon #TelecomLaw #PrivacyCompliance #EmergingTech #MarashlianAndDonahue #TheCommLawGroup #CloudCommunications #AICompliance #TechRegulation #DataPrivacy #VoiceOfTheCustomer

“Building a standard like vCon is a little like giving birth — long, painful, but ultimately transformative.” — Daniel Petrie, Founder, SIPez

SIPez’s Daniel Petrie on the Birth of vCon and Why It’s a Game-Changer for Contact Centers and Beyond

Hyannis, MA - April 2025 - As the inaugural vCon Conference wrapped up, Daniel Petrie of SIPez shared a unique perspective: while Thomas McCarthy-Howe of Stralid conceived the idea of vCon, it was Petrie who helped “deliver” it through the grueling process of standards development.

“Tom had the idea,” Petrie said. “I helped get it through the standards organizations. And yes, it’s a lot like giving birth—it’s a long and sometimes painful journey.”

For first-timers to the vCon concept, Petrie offered a clear definition:

vCon is a universal data exchange format for conversations — whether voice, video, text, email, or chat — capturing both the content and the surrounding metadata in a standardized way. This makes it dramatically easier for companies to analyze, share, protect, and enhance conversations across platforms and systems.

How vCon Helps Contact Centers — and Everyone Else

Instead of integrating separately with multiple third-party AI or analytics platforms, contact centers can integrate once into vCon and unlock access to a broad ecosystem of services. As Petrie put it: “One integration gives you access to a whole new world of capabilities — transcription, summarization, sales coaching, customer analysis, and more.”

And vCon’s potential doesn’t stop at the enterprise level. Petrie sees a future where small businesses and even individuals can extract vCons from everyday tools like Zoom or Google Meet, then feed those into AI platforms to get meeting summaries, action items, and coaching insights — services traditionally reserved for large organizations.

SIPez: Helping Companies Bridge the Gap

At SIPez, Petrie and his team focus on open-source and proprietary telecom solutions, building custom capabilities where standard vendors fall short.

“We help companies bridge gaps — integrating new technologies like vCon into existing stacks without having to wait for big vendors to catch up,” Petrie said.

Where to Learn More

For companies, MSPs, channel partners, and carriers looking to harness the power of vCon today, Petrie invites you to connect:

sipez.com

Daniel Petrie on LinkedIn

“Don’t get left behind. vCon is the future for contact centers, and the opportunity is huge,” Petrie concluded.

#vCon #ContactCenter #CXInnovation #SIPez #OpenStandards #ConversationalAI #TelecomStandards #AIInTelecom #DigitalTransformation #SmallBusinessTech #ProductivityTools

Strolid’s vCon Revolution: Bringing Automotive Insight to the Future of Digital Conversations

HYANNISPORT, MA - “We thought we were listening to the customer—until we actually did,” said Thomas McCarthy-Howe, CTO, Strolid. The first-ever vCon Conference wrapped up in Cape Cod with a surprising yet visionary host: Strolid, a company known for advancing the automotive sales process. But as CTO Thomas McCarthy-Howe explained, Strolid’s role in the conference reflects something much deeper — a transformational shift in how businesses truly hear and act on the voice of the customer. “Once you're able to actually capture the conversations in this format,” McCarthy-Howe said, “you always hear all the things your customers say — all the time.”

Why vCon, and Why Now?

Strolid specializes in helping automotive dealerships convert leads into in-person visits, operating at the front lines of high-stakes customer interaction. Yet their interest in vCon — a standardized container format for digital conversations — has taken the company beyond automotive and into the heart of digital transformation.

“At first, we thought we were collecting feedback,” said McCarthy-Howe. “But we were getting an estimate, a filtered sliver. With vCons, we realized we had been missing most of what customers were actually saying.”

Surfacing Operational Blind Spots

Strolid’s use of vCons revealed what McCarthy-Howe called “dark operational data.” In one example, he described how customers were often frustrated not because of poor service, but because they drove long distances to view cars that had already been sold — a disconnect caused by inaccurate online listings.

“That kind of insight doesn't come from hold-time metrics,” he noted. “It comes from capturing and analyzing the full customer conversation.”

Enabling Ethical, Scalable Customer Understanding

In addition to insight, vCons offer a scalable way to ensure ethical data handling. “Because we can now see everything, it becomes even more urgent to manage consent, protect privacy, and respect customer data,” McCarthy-Howe said.

The vCon standard, supported by the IETF working group and open-source ecosystem, enables organizations to share, analyze, and protect conversational data in a consistent, privacy-respecting manner.

From Car Lots to Cross-Industry Change

Although Strolid is rooted in the automotive world, the lessons apply broadly. “A dealership is just a proxy for any store,” McCarthy-Howe said. “There’s a sales cycle, a customer journey, and a need for trust and transparency. We designed this not just for automotive, but for the market.”

Learn More

Company site: strolid.com

Tech insights: strolid.ai

vCon standard: ietf.org

“If you don’t ask your AI what it used to make a decision, it might cost you your reputation—or worse.” — Matt Bramson, Chief Revenue Officer, Frontline

Frontline’s Matt Bramson on the Monumental Implications of vCon and the Urgent Need for Ethical Oversight in AI

Hyannis, MA - April 2025 - As the first-ever vCon Conference concluded, Matt Bramson of Frontline offered a compelling vision of both the promise and the peril emerging from virtualized conversations and AI-driven decision-making. In a far-ranging conversation that blended philosophy, ethics, and enterprise AI, Bramson challenged business leaders to think well beyond lanes, silos, and conventional product rollouts.

“We’re looking at something civilization-transforming,” said Bramson. “Imagine a mountain of vCons—every conversation, everywhere, stored in a structured format and interrogated by AI. The insights could be profound, even world-changing. But there’s a moral cost if we don’t ask the right questions.”

From Ephemeral Talk to Structured Truth

At its core, the vCon standard captures and containers conversations—text, voice, email—across every modality in a standardized format. These containers can then be appended with CRM data, sentiment analysis, and other metadata, unlocking unprecedented insights through AI interrogation.

“Conversations are how we share heartbreaks, solve problems, build businesses. They’ve always been ephemeral. vCons make them permanent—and actionable,” Bramson noted.

Yet with such power comes risk. Bramson recounted a chilling real-world example: an AI used by a beverage company to optimize pricing based on customer characteristics. What seemed like a smart revenue idea risked violating anti-discrimination laws—and damaging the brand—because no one had taught the AI what not to use.

“Who’s teaching the AI business ethics, social ethics? In many cases, no one,” Bramson warned. “If you’re not interrogating the AI’s output, you might not know it’s discriminating—until a journalist does.”

A Philosopher’s Take on AI

With a background in philosophy, Bramson brought a rare perspective to the discussion. Where some see hallucinations in LLMs, he sees echoes of ancient debates in epistemology and metaphysics.

“We’re overdue for philosophers in tech boardrooms,” he said. “What’s unfolding now has been pondered for millennia. Ethics and AI are now converging in real time—and most companies aren’t prepared.”

He challenged executives to go beyond staying in their lanes: “CEOs must ask how their AIs are making decisions—not just what those decisions are.”

Frontline: CX Innovation with Real-World Impact

Frontline, Bramson explained, stands at the intersection of contact center services, CCaaS technology sales, and AI-enabled agent software. But what truly excites his team is their work with social impact programs.

“We take thousands of 2-1-1 calls—from people seeking food, housing, utility help,” said Bramson. “These conversations are rich with insight, and vCons give us a framework to share that data responsibly across municipalities.”

Unlike private-sector rivals, 2-1-1 providers collaborate freely, and Bramson believes vCons will allow best practices in social services to travel faster, more efficiently, and with more measurable impact.

Where to Learn More

To explore Frontline’s technology and mission-driven solutions, visit:

frontline.group

#vCon #AIandEthics #FrontlineGroup #ConversationalAI #DigitalHumanity #VoiceOfTheCustomer #ResponsibleAI #CCaaS #211Services #TechForGood

“Voice AI isn’t here to replace people — it’s here to empower them.” — RJ Burnham, Founder, Consig

At the inaugural vCon 2025 Conference in Hyannis, RJ Burnham, founder of Consig, sat down with Doug Green of Technology Reseller News to explore the next frontier in voice AI — and why the real opportunity isn’t in replacing human teams, but amplifying them.

Burnham’s deep roots in voice tech go back nearly three decades — from early speech recognition for financial services to launching Consig just last year. Now, he’s focused on helping industry-specialized service providers navigate the AI transformation.

“There’s a lot of buzz around replacing people with AI. But in many industries — from healthcare to automotive — the real value comes from blending technology with human expertise.”

Human-AI Collaboration, Not Replacement

Burnham sees a clear trend: companies that rely on deep domain expertise are facing disruption from software-first competitors. Voice AI is now capable of more than simple scripts — it can handle complex tasks like appointment rescheduling, payment collection, and post-visit follow-ups. Still, Consig’s philosophy is to automate what machines do best, and leave the human connection to experienced staff.

One standout example? A healthcare client using Consig to power post-appointment patient interviews — a traditionally people-powered task — now partially automated with voice AI to streamline processes while retaining human empathy where it matters most.

Why vCons Matter

Burnham also presented on the role of vCons in voice AI, calling them a breakthrough in improving customer experience. "One of the most frustrating moments for any caller is repeating themselves after a handoff. vCons eliminate that," he said. By encapsulating context, transcripts, and metadata, vCons allow seamless transitions between AI and human agents, improving efficiency and satisfaction.

“vCons solve the memory problem. No more starting over. That’s a game changer for customer experience.”

What’s Next for Consig

Consig offers white-labeled, embeddable solutions to help service providers adopt AI — without becoming tech companies themselves. Burnham’s mission: make voice AI accessible, responsible, and industry-aligned.

Learn more at: consig.ai

“We’re not just building AI for call centers — we’re building AI with call centers in mind.” — Justin Massey, Relay Hawk

At the vCon Spring 2025 Conference, Justin Massey of Relay Hawk brought both a technologist’s vision and a contact center veteran’s intuition to the main stage. In a conversation with Technology Reseller News publisher Doug Green, Massey unpacked how his team is building next-generation AI voice agents — with human-first design and real-world BPO pain points at the forefront.

Contact Center Roots, Tech-Forward Vision

Massey isn’t your typical AI founder. With a family background spanning nearly five decades in call center operations, he was answering phones at 16 to fuel his Ford Explorer. “Some people theorize about customer experience. I lived it,” he shared.

That lived experience directly informs Relay Hawk’s core solution: AI agents that know when to get out of the way. When the AI hits a wall, Relay Hawk's "escape hatch" hands the conversation off to a live agent — armed with the full context, so customers don’t have to repeat themselves.

AI Meets Authentication

One of the major challenges in today’s communication landscape? Verifying identity without collecting sensitive information. Massey proposes a modern approach: linking voice calls to identity providers like Google or Microsoft, much like how we authenticate via email or social platforms. “Why not use that same concept for phone calls?” he asked. Instead of collecting sensitive data during a call — a liability for BPOs — customers could validate via external credentials and receive a verified claim.

Tackling “Dependency Problems” in AI Integration

Relay Hawk is also focused on solving integration hurdles — what Massey called “dependency problems.” “Everyone wants their AI to plug into CRMs, ticketing platforms, schedulers — but every API is different,” he said. The goal: simplify third-party integration and leverage protocols like MCP to make AI deployment more seamless.

Warning: Transcription May Be Hazardous to Your AI

Another overlooked challenge: bad transcription = bad data = bad AI. Massey highlighted that many call recordings are mono, making it hard to distinguish between caller and agent. RelayHawk recommends stereo recordings, ensuring the data feeding AI engines is clean, clear, and actionable.

“If your transcription is off, your entire AI analysis goes off the rails.”

Relay Hawk Is Looking for Design Partners

Still in its early stages, Relay Hawk is working with design partners to refine its offering. “If you're an early adopter and want to help shape a solution that actually works for your use case — we want to talk,” Massey said.

Learn more: RelayHawk.com or find them on LinkedIn by searching RelayHawk

#AIinCallCenters #VoiceAI #RelayHawk #vCon2025 #ContactCenterTech #IdentityValidation #TranscriptionAI #CXInnovation #BPOsolutions #CallCenterAutomation #ConversationalAI #DougGreen #TechnologyResellerNews

Strolid’s Road to Reinvention: How a Contact Center Pioneer Helped Create the vCon Standard

“Every time a customer calls, it shouldn’t feel like the first time.” — Matt Watson, Strolid

At the first-ever vCon Conference in Hyannis, MA, Matt Watson, Vice President of Product Development at Strolid, joined Doug Green of Technology Reseller News to tell a story few expected: how a company built to support car dealers ended up helping create the vCon standard — now poised to revolutionize how we store, analyze, and act on conversational data.

“We didn’t start by trying to invent something new. We started by solving real problems with real conversations — and vCon was the natural result.”

From Leads to Context-Rich Data

Strolid supports 165+ automotive dealerships by handling calls, texts, chats, and emails — from casual inquiries to high-stakes sales leads. Every interaction now becomes a vCon, a standardized digital conversation record.

That vCon includes:

Caller details and timestamps

Conversation transcripts

Connected metadata (like the car model or promotion that triggered the call)

Follow-up actions (like booked test drives)

Before vCons, much of this data was scattered — or lost. Now, every call is actionable, searchable, and auditable at scale.

For Dealers, It’s About Trust and Retention

When a customer calls about a $70K pickup truck, consistency matters. vCons ensure that agents are prepared, customers aren’t repeating themselves, and dealers can track every touchpoint across the buying journey.

Watson says this builds not just sales — but lifetime service value, as happy customers keep returning for service, warranty work, and more.

For OEMs, It’s Instant Market Feedback

Watson explained how auto manufacturers (like Ford) now use vCon data to measure campaign effectiveness in real time. If a customer references a football ad while calling, that detail enters the vCon — giving the brand fast, ground-level feedback on what’s working.

Empowering Employees, Too

VCons don’t just enhance CX — they improve EX (employee experience). Strolid’s agents now get real-time screen pops with the customer’s history before even answering the phone. That means less stress, more success, and happier teams.

What Is a vCon, Really?

Watson put it simply:

“A vCon is like a PDF for conversations.”

And just like PDF revolutionized documents, vCons are set to change the way we treat conversations — for everyone from dealerships to global brands.

Learn more:

strolid.com — for auto dealer services

strolid.ai — for companies looking to generate vCons at scale

“Transformation isn’t just a buzzword — it’s the reality of staying competitive.” — Bryan Martin, 8x8

At the inaugural vCon Conference in Hyannis, MA, Bryan Martin, Chairman of 8x8, sat down with Technology Reseller News to discuss the seismic shifts in enterprise communications — from vCons to AI-powered ecosystems — and why companies that don’t adapt may be left behind.

“The smartest people in the room tend to outthink the rest of the industry. That’s why I follow standards like vCons.”

From CIDP to Ecosystem Strategy

A year ago, 8x8 launched its Customer Interaction Data Platform (CIDP) — a unified system to aggregate and analyze all conversational data. Think of it as vCons in action: making customer conversations searchable, auditable, and actionable. Martin sees this as the foundation for real AI outcomes — not just hype.

But with AI moving at lightning speed, 8x8 has shifted to an ecosystem-first model, working with partners like Cognigy, CallCabinet, and Preovi to integrate best-in-class AI tools into its platform.

“You can’t build fast enough to keep up. We’re curating the best AI engines so we can swap in new ones with minimal disruption to customers.”

What vCons Bring to the Table

Martin highlighted vCons’ power to preserve context across handoffs — eliminating the “amnesia effect” when customers move from AI to human agents. That context-rich handoff, he said, is essential to improving both agent efficiency and customer satisfaction.

Real Results Over Rhetoric

Martin is candid about avoiding the “digital transformation” buzzword. “If we can’t transform ourselves at 8x8,” he said, “we have no business asking our partners or customers to change.” The goal is to show, not tell — sharing real case studies of internal improvements driven by vCons and conversational AI.

“Call it transformation or not — the end result has to be better CX, better AX, and ultimately, better business outcomes.”

Learn More

Visit: 8x8.com

Follow: 8x8 on LinkedIn

#vCon2025 #8x8 #BryanMartin #ConversationalAI #VoiceAI #CustomerExperience #AIPlatform #TechEcosystem #CXTransformation #DigitalStrategy #DougGreen #TechnologyResellerNews #vCons #CIDP #EnterpriseAI