Digital Markets Act

EU Commission tightens rules for Booking.com

Anyone booking accommodation via Booking should have "more choice and freedom" in future.

(Bild: ©Dilya - stock.adobe.com)

Due to its great market power, the booking platform Booking.com will have to comply with stricter rules in the European Union in future. The EU Commission's decision on Monday means that the company is subject to the Digital Markets Act (DMA), with which Brussels intends to limit the market power of large digital groups. Booking must therefore create fairer conditions for providers of hotels and vacation apartments.

Anyone booking accommodation via Booking should have "more choice and freedom" in future. The platform must also offer providers "fair access" to its services, the EU Commission added. Among other things, this is likely to involve more freedom of choice when it comes to booking and cancellation conditions.

"Important player" in tourism
The Amsterdam-based group is "an important player" in the European tourism industry, explained EU Digital Commissioner Thierry Breton. Brussels will "ensure that the company fully complies with the DMA obligations", he emphasized. Booking now has six months to do so; among other things, the company must submit a detailed report to the Commission.

According to Brussels, it is also examining whether the online service X (formerly Twitter) is also covered by the law. The company owned by US billionaire Elon Musk had argued that the service does not exercise any particular market power despite its high user numbers because there are sufficient alternatives such as the Threads or Mastodon platforms.

EU against the "gatekeepers"
With the Digital Markets Act, the EU wants to limit the market power of so-called gatekeepers on the internet. The regulations have already applied to Google parent Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Tiktok parent Bytedance, Meta and Microsoft since the beginning of March. The law obliges US technology giant Apple, for example, to allow alternatives to its App Store, while Google is no longer allowed to give preference to its own services in the results of its search engine.

Proceedings are already underway against Apple, Google and Meta for alleged violations of the new rules. If the allegations are confirmed, the companies could face fines of up to ten percent of their global annual turnover. As a final measure, the EU Commission can also order the break-up of a company.