Italy's Antitrust Authority said Tuesday that it has fined Ryanair over 255 million euros for abusing the dominant position it has in the market for domestic and European passenger air transport services to and from Italy.
    The competition authority said an investigation it carried out showed that the low-cost carrier "put in place an elaborate strategy affecting the ability of online and traditional travel agencies to purchase Ryanair flights on ryanair.com, "In particular, the company's strategy blocked, hindered or made such purchases more difficult and/or economically or technically burdensome when combined with flights operated by other carriers and/or other tourism and insurance services," it added.
    The authority said Ryanair started its efforts to hinder travel agencies in April 2023 and the measures then intensified over time.
    These measures included facial recognition procedures on its website for users who purchased their ticket through a travel agency, blocking booking attempts by travel agencies on its website and partnership agreements imposed on travel agencies that restricted their ability to offer Ryanair flights in combination with other services.
    "This weakened competition from agencies, both directly and indirectly, and in turn reduced the quality and range of tourism services available to consumers," the authority said.

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