U-turn of Government on dear flights. After numerous controversies from the airlines, the Ryanair's grip and the objections of Brussels, Giorgia Meloni's Executive corrects the aim: a amendment to the Asset decree (under discussion in the Senate) by rewriting the law designed at the beginning of August to counteract the price increases of the Tickets, especially for trips to Sardinia , Sicilia, and from the two islands. This is what was reported by Sun 24 Hours. But the (indirect) confirmation also comes from Minister Urso, speaking on the sidelines of a Confartigianato conference: "We think of presenting an amendment that overcomes the obstacle that, according to some interpretations, there may have been, regarding the 200% ceiling of air fares, with three measures that achieve the same objective by conferring specific and greater powers on the Competition and Market Authority and the Transport Authority".
What does the expensive flights decree provide?
The Government had decided to ban the "dynamic tariff setting” in the presence of three conditions: national route with the islands, peak demand due to seasonality or in emergency or catastrophic situations, selling price of the ticket or ancillary services 200% above the average flight fare. Furthermore, the use of automated procedures for determining rates - where there are needs for territorial continuity - based on web profiling activities of the user or on the type of electronic devices used for bookings, when this involves an economic prejudice.
Dear flights, how does it change?
The amendment completely replaces the first article, and provides for the elimination of the "reference to the maximum price", the point that has created the most friction with air carriers. In this way, companies would regain full freedom to lower or raise prices. Furthermore, in the new formulation, the decree would entrust "new and broader powers to the Competition Authority” in monitoring the elements that contribute to the formation of the cost of tickets (first and foremost algorithms). The Antitrust will have the power to heavily sanction air carriers if it finds that the algorithms are used for "agreements restricting freedom of competition" or "abuse of a dominant position".
With the new powers at its disposal, the Authority will therefore be able to intervene in cases of abuse connected to the increase in fares on routes where territorial continuity is not foreseen, in emergency or catastrophic situations and when the average ticket price exceeds 200%. “For the purposes of initiating the procedure”, explains the amendment, “the Authority may take into account the fact that the conduct referred to in paragraph 1 is: practiced on national routes connecting with the islands; during a period of peak demand linked to seasonality or in conjunction with a national state of emergency; lead to a sales price of the ticket or ancillary services, in the last week before the flight, higher than the average flight fare by more than 200%".
But it doesn't end here. The Authority may also intervene through investigations on how to profile customers through the algorithms to update ticket prices. With regard to routes operated on national routes connecting with the Islands during a period of peak demand linked to seasonality or in conjunction with a national state of emergency "the use of automated procedures for determining fares based on web profiling of the user or on the type of electronic devices used for bookings, when this causes harm to the user's economic behaviour". If, after a fact-finding investigation, "distortive factors" emerge in the flight market, it will have the power to impose "structural or behavioral measures that eliminate such distortion".
As with taxi drivers and the tax on extra profits, a threat was enough to make the Government take a step back (yet another).
