Spain’s competition regulator opens probe into online travel giant

By Alyssa McMurtry

OVIEDO, Spain (AA) – Spain’s competition watchdog announced on Monday that it is investigating Dutch online travel agency Booking.com for possible unfair practices that harm hotels and travel agencies in the country.

The online travel giant’s conduct may constitute abuse of its dominant market position, Spain’s National Commission on Markets and Competition (CNMC) said in a press release.

The probe will focus on whether the Dutch agency imposed unfair conditions on hotels in Spain and exploited hotels’ situations of “economic dependence.”

The proceedings will also determine whether Booking.com’s policies have “exclusionary effects” on other online travel agencies or sales channels.

According to Statista, Booking.com had a 71% share in Europe’s online travel agency market in 2021.

The investigation stems from two complaints lodged by Spanish hotel associations, which gave the CNMC grounds to believe that Booking.com has violated three articles of Spanish competition law.

Booking.com, in response, said it will “continue to partner with the CNMC on their questions.”

The company also insists it will work “collaboratively with our accommodation partners in the travel ecosystem, which has only recently seen signs of recovery as we enter a further uncertain future with the global economic environment.”

The CNMC now has 18 months to conduct the investigation and reach a final decision.