Madame,Monsieur,
Je suis cofondateur avec Monsieur Nawar Al Saadi de la société Global Hotel Discount, créatrice du site web
www.globalhoteldiscount.com.
Cette société a été fondée pour offrir aux hôtels indépendants et petites chaînes un support alternatif afin de commercialiser et d'optimiser leurs ventes, sans verser des commissions (30% en moyenne) aux grands groupes de voyages en ligne tel que EXPEDIA. Apres un an d'activité, 2200 hôtels dans plus de 120 pays nous font confiance.
Dernièrement, le groupe Expedia nous a menacés de poursuites judiciaires si nous n'arrêtons pas de commercialiser notre concept de distribution hôtelier qui ne repose sur aucun commissionnement. Il exige un arrêt immédiat des négociations tarifaires auprès des hôteliers dans le monde entier.nous disposons également de la même lettre de menace reçue par courrier, dans lequel Expedia nous demande de nous conformer à leurs exigences dans un délai de 5 jours,dans le cas contraire,nous serions poursuivi ci-dessous le double de cette lettre .
Vous constaté la tactique agressive et arrogante utilisée par une compagnie puissante telle que Expedia pour anhiler n'importe quelle nouvelle initiative commerciale qui pourrait menacer leur dominance sur le marché des services de réservations en ligne.
Sincères Salutations
Anes Al Taï
Directeur Commercial
Global Hotel Discount
Tel: 331-45790979
Fax: 331-45797359
Email:
altai@globalhoteldiscount.comwww.globalhoteldiscount.com VIA EMAIL AND POST
>
> Nawar Alsaadi
> Global Hotel Discount Sarl
> 96 Avenue Emile Zola
> 75015 Paris
> France
>
> Dear Mr. Alsaadi:
>
> I am Senior Corporate Counsel for Expedia, Inc. and its affiliated
companies, including Hotels.com. As you know, Expedia and Hotels.com are
leaders in the field of on-line travel planning, including online hotel
reservations.
>
> It has recently come to the attention of both Expedia and Hotels.com
that you have been sending emails to hotel properties in Spain and
other locations, making a number of false and/or misleading statements
concerning our companies practices, in order to encourage the owners of
those hotel properties to enroll in your "Global Hotel Discount" service.
Specifically, your email messages state that the hotel industry...pays
close to a third of the value of a business transaction to the middle
man and that companies such as Expedia and Hotels.com charge a 30%
commission on each reservation received . Both of these statements are
factually and demonstrably false.
>
> The emails you are sending out containing the above statements
represent breaches of European legislation relating to both misleading and
comparative advertising. Further, you appear to be making these
incorrect statements in order to induce customers to join your hotel discount
service; this could constitute unfair competition against Expedia and
Hotels.com and commercial disparagement of the Expedia and Hotels.com
brands. I would also like to take this opportunity to point out that
pricing information remains confidential as between Expedia and Hotels.com
and the hotel properties with which we contract, and that any
disclosure of this information by hotel properties would be in clear breach of
those contracts.
>
> Additionally, your website at
www.globalhoteldiscount.com contains
deep-links to both Expedia.co.uk and Hotels.com. Global Hotel Discount
has neither the requisite rights nor authorisation from either Expedia
or Hotels.com to include such links on its website. To continue with
this activity could constitute an infringement of proprietary rights,
including database rights, and would be a breach of website terms of use
in respect of both Expedia.co.uk and Hotels.com.
>
> Expedia and Hotels.com would prefer to resolve this matter amicably
and without resort to litigation. Please will you therefore provide
written assurances to me within five (5) business days that you will:
>
> 1. any mention of the names Expedia , Hotels.com' and any brand or
trade names used or owned by Expedia or Hotels.com in your
communications with third parties;
>
> 2. cease making false and/or misleading statements concerning
Expedia and Hotels.com, including but not limited to statements regarding
pricing within the travel agency industry segment as a whole and
statements regarding pricing specific to Expedia and Hotels.com;
>
> 3. providing deep-links to Expedia.co.uk and Hotels.com.
>
> Should you fail to provide these assurances, we reserve the right to
refer the matter to litigation with no further notice to you, and to
seek any and all relief to which Expedia and Hotels.com may be entitled.
>
> We await your reply.
>
> Michael C. Williams
> Senior Corporate Counsel
> Expedia, Inc.
> 3150 139th Avenue SE
> Bellevue, WA 98005
> Phone: 425-679-7078
> Fax: 425-679-7251
>
mwill@expedia.com>
www.expedia.com >
>
