On­line com­mu­ni­ca­tions services

Unlike traditional telecommunications services such as telephony and the short message service (SMS), online communications services are provided via the internet. They enable interpersonal communication using functions such as internet or video telephony and text, image and voice messaging. They are classified as number-independent interpersonal communication services (NI-ICS) and as such are subject to certain requirements under Germany’s Telecommunications Act (TKG).