Still trouble for Tripadvisor. The controversial tourism sharing site will have to pay a 500 thousand euro fine: this is the antitrust decision for unfair commercial practice on online hotel reviews. According to the Antitrust, in advertising its business, "Tripadvisor emphasizes the authentic and genuine nature of the reviews, thus leading consumers to believe that the information is always reliable, an expression of real tourist experiences".
The investigation started from a report by the National Consumer Union, Federalberghi and some consumers: the Authority led by Giovanni Pitruzzella ascertained the unfairness of the commercial practice carried out, starting from September 2011 and still in progress, by TripAdvisor LLC. (company incorporated under US law that manages the website www.tripadvisor.it) and by TripAdvisor Italy. With this provision - reads the note - the Antitrust has prohibited the dissemination and continuation of a commercial practice consisting in the "dissemination of misleading information on the sources of the reviews", published in the operators' electronic database, adopting control tools and procedures inadequate to counter the phenomenon of false reviews.
