Ryanair Holdings PLC (LSE:RYA) has welcomed the Italian competition regulator’s decision to reject online travel agency (OTA) eDreams' request for an injunction against Ryanair's direct distribution policy.
The AGCM found no danger of serious and irreparable damage to competition in a ruling published on Thursday.
The budget Irish airline is at war with OTAs across the UK and Europe for what Ryanair's boss sees as egregious overcharging by these online price aggregators.
Ryanair gave eDreams the dubious honourary title of ‘No.1 OTA Pirate’ for the third time in a row in May
Ryanair has agreements with several OTAs, including loveholidays, Kiwi, TUI, On the Beach, eSky, and El Corte Inglés. These agreements aim to prevent OTAs from screenscraping the Ryanair website and overcharging consumers with hidden fees.
O'Leary said of the latest ruling: "eDreams' efforts to lie to the AGCM with its false claims have yet again failed. We welcome yesterday's AGCM ruling to dismiss eDreams application for an injunction against Ryanair."