COURT UPHELD REQUIREMENTS OF THE FAS RUSSIA TO S7 AIRLINES TO DEVELOP A COMMERCIAL POLICY

Earlier, the Authority issued a corresponding warning to the carrier

The Authority established that Siberia Airlines JSC, within the same fare subclass, sells air tickets at different prices. However, price differences are not related to the provision services on board, the additional costs of carrier or the time before departure at which the passenger purchases a ticket.

FAS Russia pays attention to the fact that despite on dynamic pricing system and pronounced seasonality of passenger air transportation, establishment of different prices for air tickets within the same fare for the same flight on the same date and time of departure must be economically justified.

The airline and its group of persons do not have a commercial (pricing) policy or other act that determines, among other things, the pricing procedure. At the same time, on most routes operated by the airline, it occupies a dominant position. The company did not provide to the Service the evidence that different prices for air tickets were established on a reasonable basis.

The Service issued to the company a warning. Siberia Airlines JSC needs to develop and submit a commercial (pricing) policy for further approval to the FAS Russia. The document should include the calculation and establishment of fees for the carriage of passengers at an economically reasonable level and the rules that determine permissible level of deviation from it.

According to the Authority, the airline actions contain signs of abuse of a dominant position*.

The Moscow Arbitration Court upheld the position of the FAS Russia.

The FAS Russia will continue to analyze the availability and content of commercial (pricing) policies of airlines. If it detects signs of violation of antimonopoly legislation, the Service will take response measures.

Reference:

* signs of violation of the Paragraph 6 of the Part 1 of the Article 10 of the Law on Protection of Competition