Trivago faces ‘misleading hotel pricing’ lawsuit
Ian Taylor
ian.taylor@travelweekly.co.uk
Hotel metasearch site Trivago has been taken to court by Australia’s competition authority for alleged breach of consumer law.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) initiated proceedings in the Federal Court late last month accusing Trivago of “misleading hotel pricing representations” in TV and online advertising. The ACCC alleges Trivago
presented itself as “an impartial and objective price comparison service” when it “prioritised advertisers willing to pay the highest cost-per-click fee”. It argues Trivago “created
an impression” that it offers consumers the best deal when “in many cases the highlighted price was not the cheapest available”. Expedia owns a controlling stake in German-based Trivago.
“We allege that Trivago’s consumers were denied a genuine choice about choosing a hotel deal”
ACCC chairman Rod Sims said: “Consumers may have formed the incorrect impression that Trivago’s highlighted deals were the best price they could get at a particular hotel, when that was not the case. Trivago based its rankings on the highest cost per click it would receive from its advertisers. “We allege that because of the
design of Trivago’s website . . . consumers were denied a genuine choice about choosing a hotel deal.” The ACCC also argues Trivago’s
online price comparisons were false or misleading, often comparing an offer for a standard room with a luxury room at the same hotel. Sims said: “By not making genuine room-price comparisons,
COURT: Proceedings against Trivago have started in Australia
consumers would likely have paid more than they otherwise would.” He added: “Hotels may have lost
potential business as a result.” The ACCC investigation found consumers visiting Trivago’s site overwhelmingly clicked on the most-prominently displayed offers for each hotel. Sims said: “This case highlights
growing concerns in relation to comparison platforms and how algorithms present search results to consumers. Platforms convey an impression that their services are designed to benefit consumers [yet] listings are based on which supplier pays the most.” The ACCC noted Trivago ceased airing TV ads featuring price representations in April this year, but only after the adverts had aired more than 400,000 times.
Edinburgh tax plan ‘potentially disastrous’
Edinburgh council wants the city to be the first in the UK to impose a tourism tax and aims to clamp down on holiday home rentals. A proposal for a “visitor levy” of £1 a night has support locally, but is opposed by the hospitality sector, and the Scottish government appears determined to block the move. Councillors voted for the tax in June and backed
calls to introduce a licensing regime for holiday lets through Airbnb that would require all properties rented for more than 45 days a year to be registered. This is half the annual letting period Airbnb has
voluntarily agreed in London. The Scotsman newspaper reported promoters of the
Edinburgh Fringe festival back a city tax. Charlie Wood and Ed Bartlam, directors of the Underbelly group of venues, said: “A tourism levy does not put tourists off visiting Paris, Rome or Venice.” Edinburgh council is a joint Scottish National Party
(SNP) and Labour administration. Scottish Labour communities spokeswoman Monica Lennon said: “Local councils want the option of introducing a tourist tax. It is perplexing that SNP [government] ministers are blocking this.” UKHospitality chief executive Kate Nicholls said: “The introduction of a tax aimed at hotels in
Edinburgh could be potentially disastrous.” › Talk Back, page 19
DISPUTE: ECA says Ryanair ‘needs to address pilots’ concerns’
6 September 2018
travelweekly.co.uk 111
Ryanair agrees union deals in Italy and Ireland
Ryanair signed union agreements with pilots in Italy and cabin crew in Ireland last week, but the European Cockpit Association (ECA), which represents pilots across Europe, said negotiations on disputes elsewhere remained “stalled”. Members of Irish pilots’ union
Forsa will vote on an agreement to end their dispute with Ryanair that led to four days of strikes this summer. The ECA described the
agreements as “meaningful steps forward”, but it said: “Ryanair needs to address pilots’ concerns to resolve other disputes.” Ryanair completed its
acquisition of Austrian carrier Laudamotion last week and announced a doubling in size of the airline’s fleet. Laudamotion will expand
from nine aircraft to 18 for next summer with the addition of nine Airbus A320 aircraft and its workforce expand from 500 to 800. Ryanair’s acquisition of a 75% stake in the airline was cleared by EU competition authorities in July.
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