The European Commission has announced that hotels will now be able to display more attractive prices on their own website than on other platforms such as Booking. They will not be able to increase commission rates or defer offers.
Hotels listed by Booking in Europe are now free to offer on their own website or on other channels better rates than those of the Dutch reservation platform, the European Commission announced this Thursday.
Booking was named in May as one of the few “tech” giants subject in the EU to new, stricter competition rules, alongside Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta and Microsoft, under the new Digital Markets Regulation (DMA). The entry into force of the obligations for Booking takes place this Thursday.
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“Offer different prices and conditions”
Concretely, this means that hotels, car rental companies and other tourist service providers, “can now offer different (and possibly better) prices and conditions on their own website or other channels than on Booking.com “, explained the Commission in a press release.
“Booking will not have the right to increase commission rates or delist offers” from companies that offer different prices on a site other than Booking, she clarified.
“This means that other platforms and service providers will be able to compete on fairer conditions, stimulating innovation and reducing prices,” assures the European executive.
In addition, hotels and other tourism services will have “real-time and continuous” access to the data that they and their customers generate through the use of Booking. “Professional users can now choose to transfer the data they have generated on Booking.com to alternative platforms” in order to “develop more innovative and personalized offers”.
Fines for violating DMA rules
To demonstrate its full compliance with the DMA, Booking presented the measures taken in a report accessible on the Commission's website. The Commission will “carefully analyze” this document and “evaluate” whether the measures implemented actually meet the obligations. In the event of a violation of the DMA rules, the Commission can impose fines of up to 10% of the company's global turnover, or up to 20% in the event of a repeat offense.
Brussels may go in extreme cases as far as forcing the company concerned to sell certain activities or prohibiting it from making certain acquisitions. “As of today, Booking.com meets the requirements of the Digital Markets Act,” said the Dutch platform.
“Consultations with the European Commission and relevant stakeholders have shaped our compliance solutions,” she said.
The Digital Markets Regulation (DMA), which entered into force at the beginning of March, aims to monitor and stem abuse of a dominant position to better protect the emergence and growth of start-ups in Europe and improve the choice offered to users.
