Italy Fines Ryanair $302M Over Blocking Online Travel Agencies

Italy’s competition watchdog has imposed a EUR 255.8 million (USD 302 million) fine on Ryanair and its parent, Ryanair Holdings, for breaching competition rules by restricting travel agencies’ access to flight bookings on its website. The ruling was issued by the Autorità Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato (AGCM), Italy’s antitrust regulator.

According to the AGCM, Ryanair implemented what it described as an “elaborate strategy” that made it difficult or economically burdensome for both online and traditional travel agencies to sell Ryanair flights via ryanair.com, particularly when bundled with flights from other airlines or additional tourism and insurance services. The regulator concluded that these practices unlawfully restricted competition in downstream travel markets.

The investigation found that the conduct began in April 2023 and continued until at least April 2025. The AGCM identified three distinct phases. Initially, Ryanair introduced facial recognition procedures for customers who had booked through travel agencies. Later, toward the end of 2023—while the investigation was already underway—the airline intermittently or completely blocked booking attempts by agencies, including restricting payment methods and deleting accounts linked to OTA bookings. In early 2024, Ryanair imposed partnership agreements on online agencies and later introduced Travel Agent Direct accounts for traditional agencies, with contractual terms limiting the sale of Ryanair flights alongside other services.

The regulator also criticised what it described as Ryanair’s aggressive public communications against agencies that declined to sign partnership agreements, noting the airline’s repeated use of the term “pirate OTAs.” While acknowledging that Ryanair launched a white-label API solution for travel agents in April 2025, the AGCM said the tool would only restore effective competition if properly implemented.

Ryanair said it will appeal the decision, calling it “bizarre and unsound.” Chief executive Michael O’Leary said the airline’s distribution strategy is pro-consumer and designed to prevent overcharging by intermediaries. He pointed to a January 2024 ruling by the Milan Court of Appeal, which dismissed lawsuits filed by OTAs Lastminute and Viaggiare and upheld Ryanair’s agency partnership model as economically justified.

Ryanair remains Italy’s largest airline, holding a 36.5% market share by scheduled departure capacity and more than 50% on domestic routes, according to ch-aviation data. While the AGCM characterised this as a dominant position, Ryanair disputes the claim. The fine represents about 1.8% of Ryanair Holdings’ consolidated revenues for the financial year ended March 31, 2025, underscoring the potential financial and regulatory implications of the case as it heads to appeal.

Related News: https://airguide.info/category/air-travel-business/airline-finance/

Sources: AirGuide Business airguide.info, bing.com, ch-aviation.com