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A digital service provider (DSP) is broadly a person or organization that delivers a service through digital systems. For legal purposes, however, the definition depends on the specific law and jurisdiction: under the UK NIS framework it refers to providers of online marketplaces, public online search engines, or cloud computing services, while NIS2 covers a wider set of digital-sector entities.
What does “digital service provider” mean?
In ordinary use, a digital service provider is a person or organization that supplies a service digitally. That broad description is not, by itself, a regulatory classification. A business does not automatically become a regulated DSP just because it has a website, app, online checkout, or internal search tool.
The original EU Network and Information Security Directive (NIS) defined a digital service provider as “any legal person that provides a digital service.” It limited the relevant digital-service categories to online marketplaces, online search engines, and cloud computing services. The UK Network and Information Systems Regulations 2018 use the wording “any person who provides a digital service,” with the relevant service categories set out in the regulations. UK Network and Information Systems Regulations 2018; Directive (EU) 2016/1148.
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Which services count under the UK NIS framework?
The UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) describes three relevant types of digital service. The provider is the organization supplying the covered public service—not necessarily every business that uses digital tools or someone else’s platform.
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Online marketplaces
An online marketplace enables buyers and sellers to conclude sales contracts through the service. The ICO distinguishes this from a price-comparison site that directs a customer elsewhere to make a purchase, a classified-ad site, or a retailer selling only its own goods. Using a third-party payment provider does not, by itself, take an otherwise qualifying marketplace out of the category.
Online search engines
The category concerns a public online search engine. A company does not become a search-engine provider merely because it offers search across its own systems. A website that embeds another provider’s search engine is also distinct from the provider of that underlying engine.
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Cloud computing services
Cloud computing is one of the original NIS digital-service categories. Whether a particular service meets the legal definition depends on the applicable law and the service’s features; describing a product as “cloud” is not a substitute for checking the statutory test. The ICO’s digital service provider guidance explains the UK NIS categories and examples.
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Identifying a service category is only one part of determining whether an organization is within the UK NIS rules. UK government guidance identifies additional criteria relevant to a “relevant digital service provider,” including an organizational size threshold, a UK main establishment or nominated representative, and offering services in the EU. Local languages or currencies and references to EU customers may indicate that a service is offered there. These are legal-scope questions, not a general definition of every digital provider; use the current official guidance and law for a specific assessment.
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The UK government notes that prospective amendments may affect the framework, so check the current position before relying on older summaries. See NIS Regulations: UK digital service providers operating in the EU and the government factsheet on proposed amendments.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How NIS2 and the Digital Services Act differ
NIS2 (Directive (EU) 2022/2555) covers a broader range of digital-sector entities than the three digital-service categories in the original NIS framework. Its listed entity types include DNS service providers, domain-name registration entities, cloud computing, data-centre and content-delivery services, managed services, managed security services, online marketplaces, online search engines, and social networking services platforms. NIS2 defines a cloud computing service as “a digital service that enables on-demand administration and broad remote access to a scalable and elastic pool of shareable computing resources, including where such resources are distributed across several locations.” The directive’s scope and conditions must be checked separately from the UK NIS rules. Directive (EU) 2022/2555 (NIS2).
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The Digital Services Act (DSA) uses its own vocabulary, including intermediary service, caching, hosting service, online platform, and online search engine. For example, it defines an online platform as a hosting service that, at a recipient’s request, stores and disseminates information to the public, subject to specified exceptions. These DSA categories are not interchangeable with the NIS label “digital service provider.” Regulation (EU) 2022/2065 (Digital Services Act).
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| Framework | How to understand the terminology | Scope distinction |
|---|---|---|
| Original NIS Directive | Digital service provider means a legal person providing a digital service. | Relevant digital services are online marketplaces, online search engines, and cloud computing services. |
| UK NIS Regulations and guidance | The regulations define a DSP as any person providing a digital service. | Coverage also depends on applicable criteria such as size, establishment or representative, and where the service is offered. |
| NIS2 | Uses a wider set of digital-sector entity categories. | Includes several categories beyond the three original NIS digital-service types. |
| Digital Services Act | Uses separate terms such as intermediary service, hosting service, and online platform. | Its terminology and legal tests should not be substituted for NIS or NIS2 definitions. |
How to check whether an organization counts
- Identify the jurisdiction and law. Determine whether the question concerns the UK NIS framework, NIS2, the DSA, or another regime.
- Identify the service the organization itself supplies. Distinguish the provider of a public service from a business that embeds, uses, or sells through another provider’s tool.
- Match the service to the law’s categories. For UK NIS, consider whether it is an online marketplace, public search engine, or cloud computing service; for NIS2 and the DSA, use their separate lists and definitions.
- Check all additional scope conditions. Depending on the regime, size, establishment, representative, territory, and other criteria may matter. Confirm the current official text and guidance before concluding that an organization is covered.
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