Spain Booking – Hotel booking service fined 413 million euros for monopoly

Travel rental service Booking, which has long been criticized for abusing its position and often behaving like a monopoly, won a record-breaking award this week. beautiful For that reason.

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according to Decide Booking will be fined 413.24 million euros by the Spanish National Market and Competition Commission (CNMC) for holding a monopoly position in the market for the past five years. The Commission’s official website states that this is the largest fine ever imposed by the Spanish authorities for violating antitrust laws.

The Commission’s experts found that bookings made through the service during this period accounted for between 70% and 90% of the total market. This has had a negative impact on Spanish hotels. In addition, it has also caused damage to other agencies that help tourists book accommodation and compete with the giant platforms.

The CNMC’s complaint is due to Booking’s monopoly, which forces hotels in Spain to offer their deals only on the site. This hinders the work of the platform’s competitors and prevents them from launching other services to the market and expanding the market. This is despite the fact that Spain is the second most visited country in the world after France and does offer a large number of tourist services.

The department is also aware of two cases of abuse by Booking recorded since January 1, 2019. The platform imposed unfair commercial conditions on Spanish hotels using the service. In particular, hotels were not allowed to publish cheaper room rental offers on their own websites than those provided by the booking system. At the same time, the company reserved the right to unilaterally reduce the prices offered by hotels through the service.

The CNMC also drew attention to the lack of transparency in some service schemes that allow hotels to move up the rankings in exchange for higher commissions or discounts for customers of the best-selling or cheapest rooms.

The Booking service was founded in the Netherlands in 1996. It provides hotels and private accommodation owners with the opportunity to publish offers to tourists and offer online bookings.

Previously, OBOZ.UA talked about European capital offers free tours to guests For dutiful behavior in the city.

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