This colourless solid compound is used as an oxo transfer reagent in research laboratories examining organic and coordination chemistry.

Hydrolysis of resulting diacetate affords "PhIO":[4] The structure of iodosobenzene has been verified by crystallographically.

[6] Its low solubility in most solvents and vibrational spectroscopy indicate that it is not molecular, but is polymeric, consisting of –I–O–I–O– chains.

[7] The related diacetate, C6H5I(O2CCH3)2, illustrates the ability of iodine(III) to adopt a T-shaped geometry without multiple bonds.

[11] A mixture of iodosobenzene and sodium azide in acetic acid converts alkenes to vicinal diazides:.