Ryanair, suspected abuse of dominant position: possible fine of 1 billion by the Antitrust Authority
The investigation dates back to 2023. The decision could come on 22 December
"We have documented that, after having signed the agreement, Ryanair is not respecting the principle of fare parity: the lowest fares are reserved for exclusive sale on the carrier's website, making them de facto unavailable through the Travel Agent Direct channel intended for agencies". This was said by Giuseppe Ciminnisi, the president of Fiavet Confcommercio, who attended a hearing at the Italian Antitrust Authority (Agcm) for an update on Ryanair's recent conduct, which, according to the Federation, violates signed agreements and in any case constitutes anti-competitive conduct. The hearing is part of the proceedings initiated by the Antitrust Authority in 2023, relating to the blocking of intermediate bookings made through travel agencies and communications sent by the carrier to customers in which it disavowed the commercial relationship with the agencies themselves. Fiavet Confcommercio, after initiating a lawsuit for unfair competition and misleading advertising at the Court of Milan, had also intervened in the proceedings before the Antitrust Authority, proceedings which, despite the signing of the Tad (Travel Agent Direct) agreements, had continued while the investigation was closed on 8 October.
However, despite the signing of the Tad agreements in April, Fiavet finds itself again today asking the regulator to intervene. The main complaint made by Fiavet is the failure to respect the 'parity rate' principle. Ryanair defends itself by claiming the right not to make lower fares available because they are 'promotional fares'. Fiavet Confcommercio rejects this argument: 'Promotional fares are discounted fares linked to limited availability and offered for a reduced period of time,' explains lawyer Federico Lucarelli, legal advisor to Fiavet Confcommercio. The case is now awaiting the final decision of the Antitrust Authority.
Not only that. Ryanair risks a fine of between €500 million and €1 billion from the Italian Antitrust Authority, regarding an investigation into suspected abuse of a dominant position launched by the authority in September 2023: Corriere della Sera reports this, citing "sources close to the dossier". "A decision," the newspaper adds, "could arrive as early as 22 December.
EU court rejects appeal against Brussels' approval of Portugal's aid to Tap
This is not the only negative news for the company. The appeal by Ryanair against the EU Commission's decision approving EUR 2.55 billion restructuring aid that Portugal granted to Tap was rejected by the EU General Court.
In 2021, Portugal notified the European Commission of its intention to grant Tap restructuring aid under the Guidelines on State aid for rescuing and restructuring non-financial firms in difficulty. This was a loan guarantee and recapitalisation measure and also involved the conversion of a state loan into equity capital. After examining the compatibility of this measure with the Rescue and Restructuring Guidelines, the Commission adopted a decision on 21 December 2021 in which it found that the measure constituted State aid, albeit compatible with the internal market. The total amount of the measure authorised was EUR 2.55 billion.
