Fare Distributor Fires Back At American Airlines
FORT WORTH (AP) - A company that distributes airline flight and fare information is asking for dismissal of a lawsuit by American Airlines that alleges anticompetitive behavior.
American says Travelport Ltd. is trying to control the distribution of airline tickets to business travelers. Travelport said Wednesday the lawsuit is an attempt by American to get a leg up in negotiations before the pair's distribution contracts expire later this year.
The Fort Worth, Texas airline, which is owned by AMR Corp., wants to reduce costs by requiring online travel agencies to get flight and fare information directly from its computer system. That would cut commissions that so-called global distribution systems charge for providing the data to travel agencies. Travelport owns three of the five big systems, which sold $2.7 billion in American tickets last year.
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