Italian Supreme Court rules against Ryanair in favour of lastminute.com owner
The Italian Supreme Court has accepted an appeal by Last Minute owner LM Group that Ryanair cannot prevent it from displaying and intermediating its flights.
Italy’s highest court upheld a previous ruling that LM Group can lawfully continue to offer its customers the possibility to compare and reserve Ryanair tickets through its websites , which include volagratis.com, rumbo.es, weg.de and bravofly.com as well as lastminute.com.
Additionally, the Supreme Court rejected Ryanair’s grounds of appeal aimed at having a declaration of its right to refuse its consents to LM Group to have access to its database and to intermediate booking procedures on behalf of their clients.
LM Group said the ruling ‘encourages the Court of Appeal of Milan to reconsider Ryanair’s conduct as unlawful, since it prevents effective competition and harms consumers’.
It is now calling for the courts to judge whether Ryanair’s practices ‘lead to an abuse of its dominant position leading to discriminatory behaviour’.
The Court of Appeal ruled in favour of LM Group in 2015 stating it does not violate any intellectual property rights or any contractual obligation towards Ryanair in performing its online travel agency activities in respect of Ryanair flights.
In addition, in the first instance, the Court of Milan had expressly inhibited Ryanair from publicly disclosing news aimed at discrediting the activities of LM Group qualifying them as illegal with respect to the brokering of its tickets.
Marco Corradino, CEO of LM Group, said: "This is another very significant decision that once again establishes Ryanair’s conduct as unlawful while confirming that our service encourages fair competition in the market and brings strong value to the customer by offering a mix of unique travel solutions from several providers – something Ryanair and traditional airline companies can’t offer.
"We really believe that such a decision might represent the basis for a disruptive change in the world of online travel services both in the definition of relations with airlines and in relations with new online tourism operators."
LM group legal director Alessandra Reda said: "This decision opens up new scenarios from a legal point of view that could revolutionise relations between lm group and Ryanair.
"If Ryanair’s position of abuse is, in fact, recognised in addition to the already established legitimacy of our work, lastminute.com will be the first OTA to obtain a ruling that not only obligates Ryanair to not hinder our work but also urges the airline to collaborate with lastminute.com."
TravelMole has approached Ryanair for a comment.
Lisa
Lisa joined Travel Weekly nearly 25 years ago as technology reporter and then sailed around the world for a couple of years as cruise correspondent, before becoming deputy editor. Now freelance, Lisa writes for various print and web publications, edits Corporate Traveller’s client magazine, Gateway, and works on the acclaimed Remembering Wildlife series of photography books, which raise awareness of nature’s most at-risk species and helps to fund their protection.
Dozens fall ill in P&O Cruises ship outbreak
Turkish Airlines flight in emergency landing after pilot dies
Boy falls to death on cruise ship
Unexpected wave rocks cruise ship
Woman dies after going overboard in English Channel