US-based Booking.com does not like competition. The booking web portal thinks it’s powerful enough to make it a policy to only list hotels that agree not to grant special rates to customers who contact such hotels directly.
In France, this opened a legal complained, filed by the French Minister of Economics Arnaud Montebourg.
“This underscores the government’s desire and ability to ensure that national rules are respected by companies operating in the digital sector,” the minister’s office said in a statement.
“The company has been assigned to appear before the Tribunal de Commerce de Paris by the Minister of Economy.”
In November, the French government launched an investigation into the contracts of this online hotel reservation site as well as Expedia, both of which are based in the United States.
Mr. Montebourg has clashed with foreign companies seeking operating in France before. He made his opinion clear about the sale of SFR to Numericable; and last month, in the wake of GE’s bid for Alstom, he signed a decree that broadens the state’s power to stop foreign takeovers in certain industries.
Nor is it the first time an online hotel reservation site has fallen foul of French law.
In 2011, Expedia was fined €427,000 after being found guilty of a series of “false price reductions,” “false prices for hotels,” and “false information on hotel availability.”
WHAT TO TAKE AWAY FROM THIS ARTICLE:
- In November, the French government launched an investigation into the contracts of this online hotel reservation site as well as Expedia, both of which are based in the United States.
- “This underscores the government’s desire and ability to ensure that national rules are respected by companies operating in the digital sector,” the minister's office said in a statement.
- And last month, in the wake of GE's bid for Alstom, he signed a decree that broadens the state’s power to stop foreign takeovers in certain industries.
