The Hellenic Competition Commission (“HCC”) welcomes the voluntary adoption of transparency measures by Booking.com vis-à-vis its partners at Union level following the company’s regulatory dialogue with the European Commission in the context of its compliance with the Digital Markets Act.
These measures cover all Member States of the European Economic Area and constitute a positive step towards strengthening transparency, contestability in digital markets, and ensuring fair trading conditions for business users of online intermediation services, in line with the objectives of the Digital Markets Act.
Commitments before the HCC
The above transparency measures do not affect or prejudge the outcome of the pending proceedings before the HCC, which concern an alleged abuse of dominant position by Booking.com in the market for the provision of online intermediation services for making reservations at hotel-type accommodation through Online Travel Agencies (OTAs) in light of the provisions on free competition (Article 2 of Law 3959/2011 and Article 102 TFEU).
In the context of this procedure, a relevant announcement notes, the HCC, following an in-depth investigation, raised serious preliminary concerns about the possible foreclosure of competing OTA businesses from entering or expanding in Greece.
To address these preliminary concerns, Booking.com offered commitments to the HCC, which the HCC put to consultation (“market test”) on 8 July 2026. The Plenary of the HCC will decide on Booking.com’s proposal within the coming months.
The HCC actively participates in discussions taking place at Union level and cooperates closely with the European Commission and other national competition authorities within the framework of the European Competition Network (ECN) on competition issues arising in digital markets.
In this context, during the regulatory dialogue with Booking, the European Commission benefited from cooperation with the HCC, as well as the Italian and Spanish competition authorities. Today’s announcement of the adoption of transparency measures constitutes tangible proof of the importance of this close cooperation for promoting effective and coherent solutions in digital markets for the benefit of consumers and businesses.
The HCC remains committed to its mission of ensuring conditions of effective competition in digital markets by exercising its powers for the benefit of business users, consumers, and the Greek economy.
What is the Digital Markets Act?
The Digital Markets Act (DMA) is a Regulation issued by the European Union, with the aim of creating opportunities for innovation in the digital sector in Europe. For this purpose, it imposes a series of obligations on large digital platforms, the so-called “access regulators” or “gatekeepers”, which apply to the “core platform services” they provide, for the benefit of business users and consumers.
The DMA establishes an advanced system of compliance and enforcement under the guidance of the European Commission with the support of national (competition) authorities, national courts, the gatekeepers themselves, businesses and their end users, as well as civil society organisations.
The HCC’s short guide explains the content and significance of the Digital Markets Act.
On 13 May 2024, the European Commission designated Booking Holdings Inc. as a gatekeeper for online intermediation services under the Booking.com brand, thereby triggering a series of the company’s regulatory obligations in order to comply with the Digital Markets Act.