China fines Trip.com $990m over online hotel-booking monopoly

BEIJING - China's market regulator said on Saturday (July 25) it had fined and confiscated a total of 5.2 billion yuan (S$990 million) from Trip.com Group for abusing its dominant position in the domestic online hotel-booking market.

Trip.com, China's largest online travel platform, used traffic-allocation mechanisms, platform rules and technical measures to strike exclusive deals with some hotels as it sought to offer the lowest prices, the regulator said.

The State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) confiscated 1.66 billion yuan in illegal gains and imposed a fine of 3.52 billion yuan.

Trip.com, owner of travel-booking brands Ctrip, Skyscanner and Qunar, said: "We sincerely accept and will fully comply with it, and will strictly follow the regulator's requirements to systematically implement each rectification measure, ensuring that all measures are carried out effectively."

SAMR also ordered Trip.com to refund booking deposits of 122 million yuan that it said the company had withheld from hotel operators.

The practices harmed competition and consumers by restricting hotels' ability to operate across platforms and set their own prices, the agency said in a statement on its website.

China began an antitrust investigation in January following complaints that Trip.com had imposed unfair terms on hotels and manipulated pricing.

The penalty comes as Beijing moves to curb unfair competition among internet platforms and excessive price competition that authorities say has hurt businesses and fuelled deflationary pressures.

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