AEROPORTI DI ROMA - TARIFFE DEL GROUNDHANDLING
PRESS RELEASE
PRESS RELEASE
Investigation of Aeroporti di Roma for abuse of dominant position
The Competition Authority has begun proceedings to ascertain whether the Aeroporti di Roma (AdR) company is abusing its dominant position on the ground handling services market and in respect of the management of the infrastructure facilities at Rome’s Fiumicino Airport.
The investigation was instituted following complaints by a number of airport service suppliers (Aviation Services, Cimair Blu, Airlines Representative Europe, and the professional association Agisa), and by Alitalia.
The complaints being investigated by the Authority relate to: a) aspects of the new tariff structure adopted by AdR for its handling services; b) the obstacles reportedly raised by AdR to prevent others from providing ground handling services, hampering the ability of companies to provide in-house or third party ground handling services.
The new tariff structure
The new tariff structure introduces in addition to progressive discounts based on the quantity of services requested by the airlines, but also provides progressive discounts based upon the number of years for which the services are contracted.
Since AdR’s new discounts system is designed to guarantee customer loyalty, it appears apt to raise ground handling services market entry barriers at Rome's Fiumicino Airport at a time when these services are supposed to be totally deregulated under directive 67/96 and decree no. 18/99 implementing it. The benefits deriving from the entry of new competitors could therefore be completely wiped out, because most of the market would be 'tied' to AdR by multi-year contracts.
Obstacles to the provision of in-house handling services
During 1998, AdR reportedly acted in a manner that prevented the Aviation Services company from performing ramp supervision and aircraft balancing services on behalf of its own parent company, Meridiana. This conduct would appear to be a violation of the airline's right to provide its own in-house services; in this case, it would constitute an abuse of a dominant position on the part of AdR.
AdR is alleged, furthermore, to have raised difficulties with regard to the use of the premises needed to provide the ground handling services, one of which was its imposition of particularly burdensome contractual conditions for sub-letting these premises. By so doing, AdR is alleged to have acted in a manner to prevent actual or potential competitors from operating on the handling services market, and t have imposed unfair or discriminatory contractual terms and conditions on them.
The conduct which AdR is alleged to have pursued on the infrastructure management and ground handling services markets at Fiumicino Airport appear to be a violation of article 82 of the E.C. Treaty, in that the substantial restriction of the ability of companies registered in other member states of the European Union to offer their services on a domestic market could substantially damage intra-community trade.
Rome, 9 November 1999