Another lawsuit against Booking in Spain and France

Italian hotels have been fighting Booking.com since 2014. Most recently, the Italian competition authority (AGCM) warned the OTA not to give preference to hotels in the Preferred Partner programmes. The industry fears that this will reintroduce the dreaded parity clause through the back door.

Two years have already passed since the introduction of Lex Booking in Switzerland. A review revealed that little has changed since: the pressure from OTAs on accommodation providers remains.

The new provisions of the Digital Market Act (DMA) came into force on 14 November. Booking.com claims to comply with the new regulations. However, HOTREC and the German Hotel Association (IHA) strongly doubt this. Hoteliers can ask their questions in two workshops.

Booking.com has faced multiple protests in front of its headquarters in Amsterdam in the last months, driven by allegations of listing properties in Israeli settlements within the occupied Palestinian territories. The company’s dominant position in Europe has also come under criticism as the EU officially designates Booking.com a "gatekeeper".