ASTA’s Orbitz complaint rejected
The US Transportation Department has dismissed a complaint made by the American Society of Travel Agents against Orbitz.
In March ASTA alleged that Orbitz and its airline owners had been anticompetitive by providing the website with exclusive fares that were not available to traditional agents.
ASTA president and chief executive, Richard Copland said: “The airlines in question have repeatedly and systematically reduced the base commission compensation paid to U.S. travel agencies and it’s our opinion that this, coupled with their refusal to grant travel agents equal access to fares sold over the internet, represents unfair practices and unfair methods of competition”.
The response from the Transportation Department said: “We see no evidence in the record that the respondent carriers have colluded to reduce the commissions paid to travel agencies or that they have conspired to raise travel agencies’ costs for the purpose of weakening their relationships with consumers”.
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