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James Pearce, TelecomTV (00:05):
Hello and welcome to TelecomTV. I'm James Pearce and I'm in Amsterdam for CASA 26. I'm delighted to be joined today by Johanna Wood, who's director of network APIs at Vodafone. Thank you so much for joining us today. Let's talk APIs then. Which network API use cases are showing the strongest evidence of genuine enterprise demand?
Johanna Wood, Vodafone (00:25):
Yes, James, if I had a penny for every time we've been asked that question. So I think for us, it comes down to the customer and the customer benefit and what the customer's using that service for. So couple of APIs at the moment that we actually have, one that we've relatively recently launched now live in three markets, so UK, Germany and Ireland, and that's the branded calling product, which is built on CAMARA's verified calling. Really great product, super, super simple, displays the enterprise brand name when you've got a call incoming on your phone. So because it's so easy for the customer to understand the benefit, it really helps with the sales cycle. And so that's a product that we're seeing really good growth, really good uptake, and we've got more markets planned.
(01:12):
We have a series of fraud APIs, as you know, that's a really nice backbone to our portfolio. And then the other product that we are seeing good uptake on is Number Verify 2. So starting to roll that out across our markets, we're now live in eight markets on Number Verify 2. And so great to see that starting to adopt and that's a seamless replacement to SMS one-time PIN. So anytime an API is easy to explain in terms of what it does, what the customer can use it for, it's typically quite a good one for us to sell and we see great uptake when there's a real customer benefit.
James Pearce, TelecomTV (01:47):
That's really interesting and it's cool to see some of the things coming off there. What are the biggest challenges facing network API take-up today? Are they still more on the technical side or has it shifted to, say, commercialisation, distribution, or even just creating products like customers understand as you just said?
Johanna Wood, Vodafone (02:06):
I think a network API business, although it sounds a bit technical, it's really like any other business building any other product. So where we build or develop a product or we work with CAMARA to align the standards, when the product really meets the customer need and it works the way that customer needs it to work, and they understand it, that's at the point where we see great uptake. So I'd say it's less around technically, can I build it, but actually in the way that it's been designed or envisaged, does it meet the needs of the customer that's going to use that product? I would say that's probably the biggest litmus test. Does this product really work? And we've got a few products where you'll see there have been new CAMARA versions or there've been improvements made, and that's really in response to customer feedback and customer demand.
(02:58):
So I would say treating these APIs as proper commercial products, listening to the customer, really taking that feedback, that's really critical. And then once you know the product is working, scale is the other dynamic. So great that we've got a product that works really well in one market. Do the other operators, have they also developed it? Does that meet the customer's need in terms of coverage in a market? And is that customer only in one market? Maybe that bank is in eight markets, for example, and can we then get that product scaled and built out across everywhere that that banking customer would need to want to use it?
James Pearce, TelecomTV (03:38):
So why don't you talk us through some of the lessons that you've learned as Vodafone's rolled out new network APIs?
Johanna Wood, Vodafone (03:44):
For us, as I say, I lead Vodafone's line of business for network APIs. So we're thinking commercially about each product we develop. I think one of the things I would advise is it's easy if an API has worked really well in the UK to assume that that API might work really well in Germany, but actually the market dynamics, the regulation, the obligations of the bank, for example, may differ. And so understanding the dynamics of each and every market and that informing whether that product is therefore going to be successful is pretty key. So I would say one of our lessons learned is make sure that you understand that individual market and its sort of regulatory environment and its dynamics. So is the bank in that instance accountable for the fraud? If they're not accountable for the fraud, maybe they're not going to be in the market for a fraud prevention product, for example.
(04:44):
So I think understanding those things is what's really critical. So adding that analysis or that understanding of the market rather than just saying, "Oh, this product's working really well over there, therefore I'm going to build it over here and it's definitely going to work." So it comes back to the need of the customer that's going to buy it.
James Pearce, TelecomTV (05:01):
What needs to happen then over the next 12 to 18 months for the industry to demonstrate that network APIs can become a significant new telco revenue stream?
Johanna Wood, Vodafone (05:12):
Yeah, I think, look, for us, I think over the next couple of years, we've got some really solid foundations in place. We've got a growing portfolio of products, which is very positive. Now it's about scale and this becoming something where supply is, which is often talked about, supply becomes a secondary consideration. So maybe rather than talking about where there is supply, it's more of a reference to there's a couple of gaps. So I think supply would be probably my number one. It's something that certainly in terms of our footprint, we're working really hard to ensure coverage where appropriate, as I said before, of our products so that we meet the customer need. And we also have, as Vodafone, an enablement proposition to help other telcos who are maybe struggling with investment or resource get these API products to market so that we can maybe help solve for that customer need and make sure that we're meeting what they're after.
James Pearce, TelecomTV (06:09):
Perfect. Thank you so much for joining us today.
Hello and welcome to TelecomTV. I'm James Pearce and I'm in Amsterdam for CASA 26. I'm delighted to be joined today by Johanna Wood, who's director of network APIs at Vodafone. Thank you so much for joining us today. Let's talk APIs then. Which network API use cases are showing the strongest evidence of genuine enterprise demand?
Johanna Wood, Vodafone (00:25):
Yes, James, if I had a penny for every time we've been asked that question. So I think for us, it comes down to the customer and the customer benefit and what the customer's using that service for. So couple of APIs at the moment that we actually have, one that we've relatively recently launched now live in three markets, so UK, Germany and Ireland, and that's the branded calling product, which is built on CAMARA's verified calling. Really great product, super, super simple, displays the enterprise brand name when you've got a call incoming on your phone. So because it's so easy for the customer to understand the benefit, it really helps with the sales cycle. And so that's a product that we're seeing really good growth, really good uptake, and we've got more markets planned.
(01:12):
We have a series of fraud APIs, as you know, that's a really nice backbone to our portfolio. And then the other product that we are seeing good uptake on is Number Verify 2. So starting to roll that out across our markets, we're now live in eight markets on Number Verify 2. And so great to see that starting to adopt and that's a seamless replacement to SMS one-time PIN. So anytime an API is easy to explain in terms of what it does, what the customer can use it for, it's typically quite a good one for us to sell and we see great uptake when there's a real customer benefit.
James Pearce, TelecomTV (01:47):
That's really interesting and it's cool to see some of the things coming off there. What are the biggest challenges facing network API take-up today? Are they still more on the technical side or has it shifted to, say, commercialisation, distribution, or even just creating products like customers understand as you just said?
Johanna Wood, Vodafone (02:06):
I think a network API business, although it sounds a bit technical, it's really like any other business building any other product. So where we build or develop a product or we work with CAMARA to align the standards, when the product really meets the customer need and it works the way that customer needs it to work, and they understand it, that's at the point where we see great uptake. So I'd say it's less around technically, can I build it, but actually in the way that it's been designed or envisaged, does it meet the needs of the customer that's going to use that product? I would say that's probably the biggest litmus test. Does this product really work? And we've got a few products where you'll see there have been new CAMARA versions or there've been improvements made, and that's really in response to customer feedback and customer demand.
(02:58):
So I would say treating these APIs as proper commercial products, listening to the customer, really taking that feedback, that's really critical. And then once you know the product is working, scale is the other dynamic. So great that we've got a product that works really well in one market. Do the other operators, have they also developed it? Does that meet the customer's need in terms of coverage in a market? And is that customer only in one market? Maybe that bank is in eight markets, for example, and can we then get that product scaled and built out across everywhere that that banking customer would need to want to use it?
James Pearce, TelecomTV (03:38):
So why don't you talk us through some of the lessons that you've learned as Vodafone's rolled out new network APIs?
Johanna Wood, Vodafone (03:44):
For us, as I say, I lead Vodafone's line of business for network APIs. So we're thinking commercially about each product we develop. I think one of the things I would advise is it's easy if an API has worked really well in the UK to assume that that API might work really well in Germany, but actually the market dynamics, the regulation, the obligations of the bank, for example, may differ. And so understanding the dynamics of each and every market and that informing whether that product is therefore going to be successful is pretty key. So I would say one of our lessons learned is make sure that you understand that individual market and its sort of regulatory environment and its dynamics. So is the bank in that instance accountable for the fraud? If they're not accountable for the fraud, maybe they're not going to be in the market for a fraud prevention product, for example.
(04:44):
So I think understanding those things is what's really critical. So adding that analysis or that understanding of the market rather than just saying, "Oh, this product's working really well over there, therefore I'm going to build it over here and it's definitely going to work." So it comes back to the need of the customer that's going to buy it.
James Pearce, TelecomTV (05:01):
What needs to happen then over the next 12 to 18 months for the industry to demonstrate that network APIs can become a significant new telco revenue stream?
Johanna Wood, Vodafone (05:12):
Yeah, I think, look, for us, I think over the next couple of years, we've got some really solid foundations in place. We've got a growing portfolio of products, which is very positive. Now it's about scale and this becoming something where supply is, which is often talked about, supply becomes a secondary consideration. So maybe rather than talking about where there is supply, it's more of a reference to there's a couple of gaps. So I think supply would be probably my number one. It's something that certainly in terms of our footprint, we're working really hard to ensure coverage where appropriate, as I said before, of our products so that we meet the customer need. And we also have, as Vodafone, an enablement proposition to help other telcos who are maybe struggling with investment or resource get these API products to market so that we can maybe help solve for that customer need and make sure that we're meeting what they're after.
James Pearce, TelecomTV (06:09):
Perfect. Thank you so much for joining us today.
Please note that video transcripts are provided for reference only – content may vary from the published video or contain inaccuracies.
Johanna Wood, Director Network APIs Global, Vodafone
Johanna Wood, global director of network APIs at Vodafone, reveals that branded calling, fraud and number verification APIs are seeing the most demand and discusses how ensuring APIs meet the needs of enterprises is key to growing uptake and scale. She also shares the lessons learned from rolling out APIs across different markets and verticals.
Recorded September 2026
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