The Finnish Competition and Consumer Authority (FCCA) has proposed to the Market Court that Finnair be fined €7.6 million.
The FCCA says that despite multiple requests for information under the Finnish Competition Act, Finnair provided materially erroneous, incomplete, and misleading information.
The Swedish and Finnish competition authorities have been investigating suspected anti-competitive conduct by Finnair. Finnair is suspected of having hindered online travel agencies from placing discount advertisements aimed at customers searching online for Finnair airline tickets. In 2023, Finnair presented to the Swedish competition authority a clause prohibiting it from restricting advertising, which the authority accepted.
Meanwhile, the Finnish authority requested information from Finnair in autumn 2023, but accurate information was not provided. In spring 2024, it carried out an unannounced inspection and says it obtained evidence proving a violation. The proposed fine is for procedural-rule violations, and the substantive investigation continues. By law, the amount must not exceed 1 percent of worldwide turnover; the proposed fine corresponds to 0.25 percent.
Finnair argues the measure is based on a misunderstanding. In early 2020, it instructed internationally operating online travel agencies to present product prices and contents to consumers in a transparent, non-misleading manner. According to Finnair, some online travel agencies had been charging customers additional fees for services already included in ticket prices. Following the agreement with the Swedish authority, Finnair ended these measures toward travel agencies across Europe in the summer of 2023. The company plans to respond before the Market Court.
