In fact, Booking, through the simultaneous application of the aforementioned Program and the Sponsored Discount policy described above, is able to limit the autonomy of structures defining their pricing strategy, reproducing effects possibly similar to those deriving from the application of discount clauses. In fact, these programs are apt to discourage competing OTAs from reducing the commissions requested from the structures: these cannot reward them by charging lower prices due to the request for lower commissions, because otherwise they would risk losing the advantages in terms of visibility on the Booking platform deriving from participation in the Preferred Programs; at the same time, even if they applied lower prices on other OTA sites, Booking would seem to restore parity by intervening with the discount. It follows that any reduction in the commission would only have the effect of squeezing the margins of competing OTAs, not compensated by a subtraction of Booking’s sales volumes. Therefore, the combination of the two tools described might reduce the incentives of OTAs to compete on the level of commissions requested while, at the same time, that might limite the expansion opportunities of competing OTAs suitable for producing a generalized increase in retail prices on all online sales channels in the medium-long term. At the moment the investigation is still ongoing and should be concluded in May 2025. V. CONCLUSION The investigations carried out by ICA demonstrate the relevance of the application of competition rules in the tourism sector which, like other economic sectors, is affected by the influence of new technologies and the power exercised by the so-called gatekeepers, such as Booking28, for which it is necessary to identify new intervention tools that guarantee the development of sustainable tourism, from an environmental and social point of view. 28 On 13 May 2014 the European Commission designated under the Digital Markets Act (DMA), Booking as a gatekeeper for its online intermediation service Booking.com. Today’s decisions follow a review process conducted by the Commission after receiving the notifications of the three companies regarding their potential status as gatekeepers on 1 March 2024. On the basis of Booking’s self-assessment submitted on 1 March 2024 that it meets the relevant thresholds, the Commission has established that this core platform service constitutes an important gateway between businesses and consumers. 162 ROSARIA GAROZZO
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