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The authorities of the country put the service on the ground because of unfair conditions and dominance.
Spanish antitrust agency CNMC fined the service Booking.com by €413.24 million for abusing a dominant position in the market over the past 5 years.
The investigation began in October 2022 after complaints from the Spanish Association of Hotel Managers and the Regional Association of Hotels in Madrid. CNMC found out that Booking.com he imposed unfair conditions on hotels, making it difficult for them to compete.
Booking.com controlled from 70% to 90% of the online booking market in Spain. Since January 1, 2019, the company has used its dominant position to impose unfair conditions on hotels and restrict competition from other agencies.
The main charge was that Booking.com he forbade hotels to offer rooms on their websites cheaper than on the Internet. Booking.com. At the same time, the platform could reduce the price of rooms unilaterally.
Other violations related to conditions where only the English version of the agreement was legally binding, as well as the jurisdiction of the courts of the Netherlands, where the headquarters is located. Booking.com. Such conditions made it more difficult and expensive for Spanish hotels to challenge contracts in court.
CNMC also found a lack of transparency in the provision of subscription services, which allowed hotels to improve their position in the platform's ranking by paying higher commissions or offering rooms at a discount.
Booking.com I used the total number of bookings made through the platform as a criterion for ranking hotels in search results. This mechanism encouraged hotels to focus their bookings on the following areas: Booking.com which infringed the interests of other similar services.
To participate in subscription programs, hotels had to meet certain requirements that were based on the profitability of the hotel for the platform, which forced hotels to comply with a pricing policy that would suit their needs. Booking.com, but not profitable for other agencies.
The fine was divided into two parts of €206.62 million each: for unfair conditions and for restricting competition. In addition to the fine, Booking.com they were obliged to stop illegal actions and prevent similar ones in the future.
Booking.com It disagreed with the findings of the investigation and intends to appeal the decision to the National Court within two months. A company representative stated that Booking.com works in a competitive environment, providing partners with support through the Preferred Plus and Genius programs. The company believes that the CNMC solution creates inconsistency for consumers and partners in Spain.
Also, coming soon Booking.com expect increased regulation under the Digital Markets Act( DMA), which will require compliance with the new rules by mid-November. Violations can result in fines of up to 10% of global annual turnover (or 20% for repeated violations).
Source
Spanish antitrust agency CNMC fined the service Booking.com by €413.24 million for abusing a dominant position in the market over the past 5 years.
The investigation began in October 2022 after complaints from the Spanish Association of Hotel Managers and the Regional Association of Hotels in Madrid. CNMC found out that Booking.com he imposed unfair conditions on hotels, making it difficult for them to compete.
Booking.com controlled from 70% to 90% of the online booking market in Spain. Since January 1, 2019, the company has used its dominant position to impose unfair conditions on hotels and restrict competition from other agencies.
The main charge was that Booking.com he forbade hotels to offer rooms on their websites cheaper than on the Internet. Booking.com. At the same time, the platform could reduce the price of rooms unilaterally.
Other violations related to conditions where only the English version of the agreement was legally binding, as well as the jurisdiction of the courts of the Netherlands, where the headquarters is located. Booking.com. Such conditions made it more difficult and expensive for Spanish hotels to challenge contracts in court.
CNMC also found a lack of transparency in the provision of subscription services, which allowed hotels to improve their position in the platform's ranking by paying higher commissions or offering rooms at a discount.
Booking.com I used the total number of bookings made through the platform as a criterion for ranking hotels in search results. This mechanism encouraged hotels to focus their bookings on the following areas: Booking.com which infringed the interests of other similar services.
To participate in subscription programs, hotels had to meet certain requirements that were based on the profitability of the hotel for the platform, which forced hotels to comply with a pricing policy that would suit their needs. Booking.com, but not profitable for other agencies.
The fine was divided into two parts of €206.62 million each: for unfair conditions and for restricting competition. In addition to the fine, Booking.com they were obliged to stop illegal actions and prevent similar ones in the future.
Booking.com It disagreed with the findings of the investigation and intends to appeal the decision to the National Court within two months. A company representative stated that Booking.com works in a competitive environment, providing partners with support through the Preferred Plus and Genius programs. The company believes that the CNMC solution creates inconsistency for consumers and partners in Spain.
Also, coming soon Booking.com expect increased regulation under the Digital Markets Act( DMA), which will require compliance with the new rules by mid-November. Violations can result in fines of up to 10% of global annual turnover (or 20% for repeated violations).
Source
