FAS HELPED HOTELS IN ST PETERSBURG

The Main Department of the Ministry of Interior in St Petersburg and the Leningrad region executed a warning issued by St Petersburg OFAS, and drafted the guidelines for hotels on the data transfer rules, an information exchange scheme and a model agreement on cooperation in the course of transferring information about migrants

Under the existing law, hotels and other accommodation facilities must give information about migrants to local Department of the Ministry of Interior. St Petersburg hotel supplied information about the newly arrived only via software owned by “Federal Hotel Service” Ltd. (“FHS”). Representatives of “Opora Russia” National NGO of small and medium business complained to St Petersburg OFAS.

Having considered the complaint from the business-community, St Petersburg OFAS found that such actions of the Main Department of the Ministry of Interior in St Petersburg and the Leningrad region contained elements of violating the Federal Law “On Protection of Competition”*. The Main Department of the Ministry of Interior in St Petersburg and the Leningrad region refused to conclude agreements on cooperation with companies that had similar software products, which, however, were not owned by “Federal Hotel Service” Ltd. As a result, they were not able to operate on the market of rendering services to transfer data about migrants. As a result, on 6 December 2019, St Petersburg OFAS issued a warning to the Main Department of the Ministry of Interior in St Petersburg and the Leningrad region with the deadline - 30 January 2020.

The Main Department of the Ministry of Interior in St Petersburg and the Leningrad region executed all requirements on schedule. Executing the warning, it devised the guidelines, an information exchange scheme and prepared a model agreement on cooperation.

Reference:

* Under Clause 2, Clause 6 Part 1 Article 15 of № 135-FZ Federal Law “On Protection of Competition” of 26.07.2006.