Digital Health

The online video consultation uses an exchange between physician and patient by means of a synchronous audio-visual transmission of a video conferencing system. By eliminating travel times and waiting times at the surgery it provides an opportunity to increase efficiency in the organization of a conversation between physician and patient - in particular in overcoming greater

distances. The communication between physician and patient can be complemented systematically. However, savings potentials are relatively small because of the persisting need of one physician and the additional purchase of expensive hardware and software.In contrast to the United States, Australia or Scandinavia, where physician’s teleconsultation is already common practice, in Germany it is still in an early development stage. The low distribution is essentially attributable to the scepticism of established physicians. By contrast, patients express quite some interest in online video consultation. The market potential of teleconsultations in Germany is tremendous: about 10% - 20% of the total amount of consultations held in Germany could be substituted by an online video consultation. The currently rather average competition intensity in the market of online videoconsultations will increase at higher application. Numerous substitute products such as the phone enables the physicians who appear as customers, a higher bargaining power than the providing companies have. In the next decade, an area-wide application of online video consultations is predicted. Provided that the amount of the EBM-reimbursement scheme is high enough to attract the physicians to make more use of it.