Ryanair Wins U.S. Court Case Against Booking.com — Update

By Pierre Bertrand

Ryanair said Friday that it has won a case in the U.S. against Booking.com and that the jury in the state of Delaware dismissed the online travel company's counter claims against the low-cost airline.

Ryanair said jurors on Thursday evening unanimously ruled in favor of its claims that Booking.com had violated the U.S. Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, causing loss to Ryanair.

"The jury also ruled that Booking.com had done so knowingly with 'intent to defraud', and that Ryanair had suffered economic harm as a result of Booking.com's unlawful screenscraping activity," Ryanair said.

Ryanair added that the Delaware Court jury, in addition, dismissed all of Booking.com's counterclaims against Ryanair, including claims of defamation, unfair competition and deceptive trade practices.

Booking.com said in an emailed statement that it was disappointed by, and disagreed with, the outcome.

"We maintain that allowing customers to access and compare fares across the travel industry promotes consumer choice, and plan to appeal," Booking.com said.

Ryanair has had long-running dispute with some online travel agencies that it says redirect and overcharge consumers who believe they are booking directly with the airline.

The jury ruling comes after Switzerland-listed Lastminute.com signed earlier this month its first commercial agreement with Ryanair to offer the airline's flights to customers for a period of three years.

On Thursday, Ryanair also struck a deal with Expedia Group allowing it to offer the company's flights to customers.

Write to Pierre Bertrand at pierre.bertrand@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 19, 2024 10:03 ET (14:03 GMT)

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