Transportation Department Requests More Information from Orbitz
Orbitz, an online travel site, has agreed to provide the Department of Transportation with its latest operational information.
Other online travel services have claimed that the airlines that own Orbitz provide it with fares denied to other outlets, according to published reports.
Since Orbitz opened last April, the DOT has monitored the site with an eye toward preventing it from becoming a vehicle for price collusion.
Orbitz, based in Chicago, was created by a consortium of five airlines.
To date, Orbitz has responded to all information requests and has been “very cooperative,” Bill Mosley, Department of Transportation spokesman said.
Mosley also said that the DOT would incorporate data from other sources, such as travel agents, airlines and other online travel sites such as Expedia and Travelocity, in a report to Congress.
According to Mosley, the Orbitz review will “continue as long as there are any questions as to whether there are any competitive issues raised. It could be indefinite.”
Orbitz issued a statement Wednesday saying that it welcomed the DOT’s comprehensive study, and that it was confident that the study would “reaffirm our pro-competition, pro-consumer position.”
