China Fines Travel Giant Trip.com $765 Million for Monopoly Abuses
Regulator cites exclusive partnerships and price manipulation that harmed competition and consumers.
China's state market regulator has imposed penalties of nearly 5.2 billion yuan ($765 million) on Trip.com Group, the country's largest online travel platform, for monopolistic conduct. The State Administration for Market Regulation announced Saturday that the company, which operates brands including Ctrip and Skyscanner, had abused its dominant market position since at least 2020.
The regulator stated that Trip.com restricted competition by entering into exclusive agreements with some hotels. It also allegedly offered preferential traffic allocation to these partners and prohibited hotels from working with competing platforms. Furthermore, Trip.com demanded that hotel operators on multiple platforms ensure their rates on Trip.com were the lowest available online.
According to the statement, Trip.com's actions eliminated and restricted market competition, prevented hotels from engaging in cross-platform business, infringed upon hotels' pricing rights, and harmed consumer interests.
The investigation, which began in January, resulted in the confiscation of over 1.6 billion yuan ($245 million) in illegal gains and a fine of more than 3.5 billion yuan ($520 million). Trip.com was also ordered to refund approximately 122 million yuan ($18 million) that it had withheld from hotel operators.
Trip.com acknowledged the decision and stated that it "sincerely accepts and will resolutely comply" with the penalties. The company committed to systematically implementing the rectification measures and ensuring their full execution.