Despite German antitrust decision: Booking.com not giving in

Berlin/Vienna/Hanover. Last Friday, Expedia tried to push through its idea of parity in Germany. The hotel association IHA hopes for new pressure through the Federal Cartel Office. In Vienna, OEHV is currently evaluating its chances of success against unfair OTAs. At the same time, a white paper explains to hoteliers the operating principles of OTAs and other portals.

Bonn. After HRS, it's now Booking.com's turn to attract the attention of competition authorities. The German Federal Cartel Office has issued a warning to the booking platform due to its continued use of the best-price clause. This puts HRS and Booking.com on the same page; proceedings against Expedia are still ongoing.

Bonn. The best price clause of the Cologne-based Online Travel Agent HRS, infringes anti-trust laws. This was decided by the German Federal Cartel Office on December 20, 2013 and with this, has returned pricing sovereignty back to the industry, at least in Germany. How it will now proceed in concrete terms, at least so early in the new year, is still unclear.

Bonn. The German Federal Cartel Office expressed its competitive concerns about the "best rate clause" of the online travel agent HRS from Cologne in an official communication yesterday at noon. "After examining the statement of the hotel portal HRS and all other leading market participants, the German Federal Cartel Office issued another written warning to HRS for violating German and European competition law", says the statement. After the first warning in February 2012, HRS received the second and more detailed warning from the competition authorities. Tobis Ragge, Managing Director of HRS, has not given in, however. The German Hotel Association is "exceptionally" pleased about the Cartel Office's decision and hopes that the rate sovereignty will now fall back to the hotels.

Munich. Google and Facebook are lining up "to digitize" mankind. Search engines and Social Media are developing new business models from the internet euphoria and increasing mobility. The traveller is becoming a transparent commodity that will be paid for by the click in the future. What the four talks at the "eMarketing Day" by the Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association and the Instituts Tourismuszukunft praised on Monday in Munich as a nearby, digital future sounds quite creepy. In contrast, the renewed discussion over the commission rise and the altered terms and conditions by the online mediator, HRS, looked like a medieval knight's tournament. Nevertheless, the latter was under heavier discussion. This subject gained a new dimension with the warning by the German Federal Anti-trust Commission toward HRS on last Friday. On Monday, Managing Directors, Tobias Ragge and Michael Simon, positioned themselves for the questions by HSMA members - and afterwards, took an opposing stand with hospitalityInside.com once again on the points that the hoteliers as well as the German Federal Anti-trust Commission hold as critical. After the interview with HRS, hospitalityInside.com asked the former Marriott distribution specialist and currently independent consultant, Bruno Wolf, from Frankfurt to comment on the answers by HRS.