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Broad and narrow price parity agreements: Evidence from European hotels

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  • Klopack, Ben
  • Pierri, Nicola

Abstract

This paper investigates the effect of “price parity” clauses in contracts between hotels and online travel agencies (OTAs). These restrictions require a hotel to set its lowest prices for a given room on a travel agency’s website and have come under recent scrutiny by antitrust regulators. We use a synthetic control strategy to study a series of policy changes in Europe using novel data on transacted hotel prices and occupancy. Our analysis finds that (i) restricting the broadest form of parity clauses, but leaving in place a more limited version, reduced prices by about 1.5% and increased occupancy by 1 percentage point; (ii) relative to narrow parity, a complete ban on parity clauses reduced prices by between 0 and 4%, but had no impact on occupancy.

Suggested Citation

  • Klopack, Ben & Pierri, Nicola, 2026. "Broad and narrow price parity agreements: Evidence from European hotels," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 105(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:indorg:v:105:y:2026:i:c:s0167718726000184
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ijindorg.2026.103265
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    JEL classification:

    • D40 - Microeconomics - - Market Structure, Pricing, and Design - - - General
    • K21 - Law and Economics - - Regulation and Business Law - - - Antitrust Law
    • L11 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance - - - Production, Pricing, and Market Structure; Size Distribution of Firms
    • L42 - Industrial Organization - - Antitrust Issues and Policies - - - Vertical Restraints; Resale Price Maintenance; Quantity Discounts
    • L81 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Services - - - Retail and Wholesale Trade; e-Commerce

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