UK-based hotel website Skoosh is taking its dogged fight against the industry to Canada in yet another very public row, this time with two hotel chains.
Just a week after UK regulators announced a formal review of the online hotel sector after allegations of breaches of competition law, triggered in part by Skoosh, Canadian authorities are being urged to undertake a similar investigation.
Skoosh has written an open letter (a process the company used in its battle with Booking.com) to the Canadian Compeition Bureau to investigate alleged price fixing within the hotel sector and its relationship with other online travel agencies.
Director Dorian Harris has singled out two chains, Delta Hotels and SilverBirch Hotels, urging the CCB to look into possible breaches of competition law in the country.
We were approached again this week by SilverBirch Hotels and Resorts which appear to have 20 or so hotels around Canada. They’ve noted, ‘our hotels are being listed on this site with rates that are not approved by us for sale to the general public’ and insisted that we remove them.
We already lost Delta Hotels from our site this year and it would be very disappointing to lose another chain. As one of the few independent companies selling Canadian hotels online, I believe that would be a loss for the Canadian hotel trade and the consumer.
I also understand from you that you believe that there may be sufficient intra-brand competition in the hotel market to keep pricing fluid. Again, my own understanding is that’s unlikely to be the case. Of course I don’t speak as an economist, but rather a long time industry insider.
"We were approached again this week by SilverBirch Hotels and Resorts which appear to have 20 or so hotels around Canada. They’ve noted, ‘our hotels are being listed on this site with rates that are not approved by us for sale to the general public’ and insisted that we remove them.
"We already lost Delta Hotels from our site this year and it would be very disappointing to lose another chain. As one of the few independent companies selling Canadian hotels online, I believe that would be a loss for the Canadian hotel trade and the consumer.
"I also understand from you that you believe that there may be sufficient intra-brand competition in the hotel market to keep pricing fluid. Again, my own understanding is that’s unlikely to be the case. Of course I don’t speak as an economist, but rather a long time industry insider."
Officials at both Delta and SilverBirch have not responded to request for comment.
The UK Office of Fair Trading says it is keen to talk to a number of parties about the hotel rate parity issue. The Financial Times says the Intercontinental Hotels Group (IHG) is one of a number of chains already contacted by regulators.