US: Hotel, travel site collusion case tossed

A law suit alleging various travel booking cites and hotels in the US of colluding to fix prices was tossed by a judge this week, finding that there was not sufficient evidence to support the plaintiffs’ claims.

Reports say the case claimed travel sites like Expedia and Priceline colluded with hotel chains including Hilton and Hyatt to allow the travel sites to list the same price for hotel rooms so they could all claim they had the cheapest offer. The plaintiffs argued that this practice lead to price-fixing.

But a US District Judge tossed the case, ruling that the plaintiffs are looking to “have the Court infer an antitrust violation” and that they are asking the court “to repudiate antitrust law’s well-established focus on interbrand pricing and the rule that a business need not compete against itself in setting the price of its own product.”

Rather, the judge said, the evidence suggested significant pricing competition between hotels.

Full Content: Consumerist

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