A telephone conference call is an example of which type of communications?

Concept: any communication setting is classified on two independent axes. The time axis asks whether the participants take part at the very same moment (synchronous) or each at a moment of their own choosing (asynchronous). The place axis asks whether they share one physical location (co-located) or sit in separate locations (distributed). Crossing the two axes gives the familiar four-cell time/place matrix of communication.

Applying the two axes to a telephone conference call:

1. Time axis: everyone is joined to one live call and speaks and listens as the discussion happens, so the participation is simultaneous — the same time.

2. Place axis: each participant dials in from wherever they are — separate rooms, offices, cities or countries — so no shared physical location is needed — a different place.

3. Read the cell where the two axes meet: same time combined with different place, that is, the synchronous distributed cell of the matrix.

Cross-check against all four cells of the matrix:

Only the cell that combines the same time with a different place keeps the participants simultaneous while allowing them to be physically apart, so a telephone conference call is an example of same time / different place communication.