International Journal of Tourism, Travel and Hospitality Law 2023

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF TOURISM, TRAVEL AND HOSPITALITY LAW online marketplace and the consumer can be considered as unfair business practice (misleading omission, Article 7 UCPD).68 The rules laying down which active obligations to inform the consumers rest on the provider of the online marketplace indirectly ensue from the UCPD rule on when misleading omissions are considered as being unfair commercial practice. 69 The largest amount of the new material information referred to in Article 7 UCPD inserted by the Omnibus Directive are those which, according to empirical research, are considered as essential for the selection of tourism services on the online market.70 From among the new material information, the following are of particular importance for the consumers on the online tourism services market: o Information whether the third party offering the product (e.g. short-term accommodation service) is a trader or not.71,72 This is considered to be material information within an invitation to purchase (Article 7/4/f UCPD).73 Information on the status of a third party is given to the consumer on the basis of that third party’s declaration submitted to the provider of the online marketplace. The provider of the online marketplace is not required to establish alone, to explore and verify the legal status of the third-party.74 The provider it only obliged to supply to the consumer information on the third 68 See Loos (2020), p. 415; Cauffman,C., Goanta, C. (2021), pp. 762, 763; Duinvenvoorde, B. (2022), pp. 48, 49. 69 See Narciso, M. (2022a) p. 360. 70 For more see under 1. 71 See Art. 7/4 (f) UCDP inserted by Art. 3 (4) (a) Omnibus Directive. 72 The same obligation, with some additional information, is envisaged in the new Art. 6a/1/b CDR for the provider of online marketplaces. 73 ‘Invitation to purchase’ means a commercial communication which indicates characteristics of the product and the price in a way appropriate to the means of the commercial communication used and thereby enables the consumer to make a purchase (Art. 2 (i) UCPD). 74 See recital 28, Omnibus Directive. Directive on electronic commerce applies to the acting of the provider of the online marketplace because information society services and intermediary service providers are involved. It arises from the provisions of this Directive that hosting service provider is not liable for the information transmitted, i.e. for the hosted content. Hosting service providers have no general obligation to monitor the information which they transmit or store, nor a general obligation actively to seek facts or circumstances indicating illegal activity. See Arts 12-15, Directive on Electronic Commerce. See Schulze, R., Staudenmayer, D., pp 458-494; Busch (2016), pp. 237, 238;. Loos (2020), p. 416; Cauffman, C., Goanta, C. (2021), p. 764; Duinvenvoorde, B. (2022), pp. 44-46; Narciso, M. (2019) pp. 568 -571. On the one hand, such an interpretation is also in line with the court practice of the CJEU on the application of exemption for liability for the stored information if the service provider had not played active role and provided the intermediary services neutrally by merely technical and automatic processing of the information provided by a third party. On the other hand, it is established in every concrete case whether only intermediary service is involved,

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