diff --git a/commons/opentelemetry/otel.go b/commons/opentelemetry/otel.go
index c8083d7..a183470 100644
--- a/commons/opentelemetry/otel.go
+++ b/commons/opentelemetry/otel.go
@@ -98,6 +98,22 @@ func NewTelemetry(cfg TelemetryConfig) (*Telemetry, error) {
 		cfg.Redactor = NewDefaultRedactor()
 	}
 
+	// Normalize endpoint: strip URL scheme and infer security mode.
+	// gRPC WithEndpoint() expects host:port, not a full URL.
+	// Consumers commonly pass OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_ENDPOINT as "http://host:4317".
+	if ep := strings.TrimSpace(cfg.CollectorExporterEndpoint); ep != "" {
+		switch {
+		case strings.HasPrefix(ep, "http://"):
+			cfg.CollectorExporterEndpoint = strings.TrimPrefix(ep, "http://")
+			cfg.InsecureExporter = true
+		case strings.HasPrefix(ep, "https://"):
+			cfg.CollectorExporterEndpoint = strings.TrimPrefix(ep, "https://")
+		default:
+			// No scheme — assume insecure (common in k8s internal comms).
+			cfg.InsecureExporter = true
+		}
+	}
+
 	if cfg.EnableTelemetry && strings.TrimSpace(cfg.CollectorExporterEndpoint) == "" {
 		return nil, ErrEmptyEndpoint
 	}
diff --git a/commons/opentelemetry/otel_test.go b/commons/opentelemetry/otel_test.go
index 94e6e60..94c6fa7 100644
--- a/commons/opentelemetry/otel_test.go
+++ b/commons/opentelemetry/otel_test.go
@@ -92,6 +92,75 @@ func TestNewTelemetry_DefaultPropagatorAndRedactor(t *testing.T) {
 	assert.NotNil(t, tl.Redactor, "default redactor should be set")
 }
 
+// ===========================================================================
+// 1b. Endpoint normalization
+// ===========================================================================
+
+func TestNewTelemetry_EndpointNormalization(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+
+	tests := []struct {
+		name             string
+		endpoint         string
+		wantEndpoint     string
+		wantInsecure     bool
+		insecureOverride bool // initial InsecureExporter value
+	}{
+		{
+			name:         "http scheme stripped and insecure inferred",
+			endpoint:     "http://otel-collector:4317",
+			wantEndpoint: "otel-collector:4317",
+			wantInsecure: true,
+		},
+		{
+			name:         "https scheme stripped and insecure stays false",
+			endpoint:     "https://otel-collector:4317",
+			wantEndpoint: "otel-collector:4317",
+			wantInsecure: false,
+		},
+		{
+			name:         "no scheme defaults to insecure",
+			endpoint:     "otel-collector:4317",
+			wantEndpoint: "otel-collector:4317",
+			wantInsecure: true,
+		},
+		{
+			name:             "https with explicit insecure override preserved",
+			endpoint:         "https://otel-collector:4317",
+			insecureOverride: true,
+			wantEndpoint:     "otel-collector:4317",
+			wantInsecure:     true,
+		},
+		{
+			name:         "http with trailing slash",
+			endpoint:     "http://otel-collector:4317/",
+			wantEndpoint: "otel-collector:4317/",
+			wantInsecure: true,
+		},
+	}
+
+	for _, tt := range tests {
+		t.Run(tt.name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			t.Parallel()
+
+			// Use telemetry disabled so we don't need a real collector.
+			tl, err := NewTelemetry(TelemetryConfig{
+				LibraryName:               "test-lib",
+				EnableTelemetry:            false,
+				CollectorExporterEndpoint:  tt.endpoint,
+				InsecureExporter:           tt.insecureOverride,
+				Logger:                     log.NewNop(),
+			})
+			require.NoError(t, err)
+			require.NotNil(t, tl)
+			assert.Equal(t, tt.wantEndpoint, tl.CollectorExporterEndpoint,
+				"endpoint should be normalized")
+			assert.Equal(t, tt.wantInsecure, tl.InsecureExporter,
+				"InsecureExporter should be inferred from scheme")
+		})
+	}
+}
+
 // ===========================================================================
 // 2. Telemetry methods on nil receiver
 // ===========================================================================