It has not been established that the price parity clauses applied by accommodation reservation platforms such as Booking.com are proportionate in relation to the objective of providing a diversified and comparable offer, ruled the Court of Justice of the European Union in a judgment handed down on Thursday 19 September (Case C-264/23).
The Dutch company Booking.com prohibits establishments using its online intermediation services to book accommodation from offering overnight stays at prices lower than those offered on its website. This prohibition applies to offers via the hoteliers’ own sales channels and via sales channels operated by third parties (‘wide parity’ clause) or only to offers of overnight stays via the hoteliers’ own sales channels (‘narrow parity’ clause).
Booking.com asked the Dutch courts to rule that these clauses are valid. Referred to the Court of Justice for a preliminary ruling, the Court is of the opinion that the services provided by the complainant have a neutral or even positive effect on competition.
On the other hand, it considers that price parity clauses, whether wide or narrow, first, are objectively necessary for the implementation of that main operation and, second, are proportionate to the objective pursued by it.
According to the Court, wide parity clauses can reduce competition between hotel reservation platforms and carry the risk of ousting small platforms and new entrants. As for the narrow clauses, although they are intended to combat the risk of free-riding, they do not appear to be necessary to ensure the economic viability of the online platform.
To see the judgment of the Court of Justice: https://aeur.eu/f/dhv (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)