iCalendar is not limited to the exchange of files. The format behind the iCalendar appointments is closely linked to the email standard; this is followed by the Multipurpose Internet Mail Extension (MIME) and in particular the type ‘text/calendar’. Thanks to this open design, calendar entries in this format can be placed almost anywhere, and even integrated into web pages. Events can thereby be shared or important appointments published. Together with WebDAV servers which are used to provide files over the Internet, appointments can be synchronized at any time.
Furthermore, the format offers the option of directly exchanging appointments between mobile devices via Bluetooth or a personal network. So, if you want to organize the next appointment in a business meeting, you can simply submit this entry to everyone present. In addition, iCalendar offers the possibility of using all stored information in several applications, which are then synchronized in the format in real time.
The iCalendar format is accepted by popular calendar programs that integrate the web-based data from the calendar:
- Google Calendar
- Android Calendar
- Microsoft Outlook
- Blackberry Calendar
- macOS/iOS Calendar