COMPETITION ISSUES IN AIR TICKET SALES 291 GDS for finding suitable and available flight connections at a favourable price that motivated consumers to book through a travel agency. If this advantage does not apply anymore because the travel agent only uses the same booking portal, which is accessible for the consumer himself, there is no reason for an reasonably experienced consumer to buy his tickets at a travel agency. Though the Supreme Court acknowledged the role of theGDS as independent market players, it still emphasised the airlines’ responsibility to avoid the price discriminations caused by such distribution channels. It is interesting that, in this regard, the Supreme Court identified a particular flight route as being decisive for assessing a carrier’s market position. While it is true that the market position may be different from route to route, depending on the competition at a particular flight route, the approach makes it difficult to effectively challenge price discrimination practices as a widely applied phenomenon. Moreover, the approach of allowing an injunction only to a narrow extent, geared to the specific infringement and without extending it to similar infringements, could possibly induce the defendant to continue his unlawful practice beyond the specific occasion as long and as far as possible.
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