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6 top Paris hotels fined on price fixing
6 top Paris hotels fined on pricing By Thomas Crampton International Herald Tribune TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2005 PARIS In a five-star case of collusion, six of the most prestigious luxury hotels in Paris were fined Monday for running an illegal price-fixing cartel that at one point pushed their room prices - already among the highest in the world - to an average of more than E700 per night. * The Hôtel de Crillon, the Four Seasons Hôtel George V, the Hôtel Ritz, the Hôtel Plaza Athénée, the Hôtel Meurice, and Hôtel Le Bristol were fined a total of E709,000, or $831,000, by the French Competition Council, which issued a 57-page decision replete with e-mail trails and charts detailing how the hotels worked together on a weekly and monthly basis to shift prices. * "The investigation showed regular exchanges of confidential information among the six hotels regarding their business and the elements necessary for their marketing plans," the council, a government watchdog charged with stopping market collusion, said in a statement. * The fines for the hotels, which are all ranked by the Michelin travel guides at the highest level of luxury, five red stars, were levied in relation to the earnings of the hotels and the length of time they had been involved in price fixing. * They ranged from E248,000 for the Hôtel de Crillon to 55,000 for the Hôtel Meurice. * The Hôtel George V was fined 115,000; the Hôtel Plaza Athénée, E106,000; the Hôtel Ritz, E104,000; and Le Bristol, E81,000. * In the gold-festooned lobby of the Hôtel de Crillon, housed in a building constructed for Louis XV on the Place de la Concorde in the middle of Paris, the communications director declined to make any comment on the fines and insisted that a reporter attempting to speak with guests leave the premises immediately. * Room prices in the Crillon, which is owned by the Taittinger family, range from 500 per night for a single room in low season to E8,080 per night for the Bernstein suite, named after Leonard Bernstein, the late American conductor and composer, who stayed there. * A frequent guest at the Hôtel Meurice, an opulent hotel that is owned by the Brunei Investment Agency, said he was not surprised by the collusion. * "In this level of hotel you can always negotiate the level of prices anyways," said Luc Janssen, a Belgian who stays at the hotel often. * Officials of the six hotels spent considerable time on e-mail and in meetings exchanging information in a bid to fix prices, according to the French investigator's report, which came from a four-year investigation of allegations that were first raised in a broadcast by the French television station M6. * "I have the pleasure here of sending you our results and await yours," a sales coordinator at the George V, identified only as Madame X, said in an e-mail dated Feb. 2, 2001, sent to counterparts at the Hôtel Ritz, the Hôtel Plaza Athénée, the Hôtel Meurice, the Hôtel de Crillon and Le Bristol. * The e-mail included a chart showing levels of occupancy, average room prices and revenue information for the previous December. * Employees from other hotels were quoted as sending similar e-mails. * A graph toward the end of the report detailed the rise and fall of average room prices over two years, in which there appears to be little variation between the hotels. * The French government report highlighted how the hotels dominate the luxury hotel market in central Paris. * It described them as occupying "a prestigious site in the center Paris; a high proportion of suites, some of which are exceptional; a gastronomic restaurant; exceptional amenities such as swimming pools or gyms; a large number of personnel at the disposal of guests." * As such, the report said, these hotels charge significantly more than the next lesser tier of competitor. * * * James Kanter of the International Herald Tribune contributed to this article. * * |
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6 top Paris hotels fined on price fixing
On Tue, 29 Nov 2005 16:52:21 +0100, Earl Evleth
wrote: 6 top Paris hotels fined on pricing Just looks like a normal way of doing business for the high flyers. |
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6 top Paris hotels fined on price fixing
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6 top Paris hotels fined on price fixing
On 29/11/05 21:06, in article ,
"Michael" wrote: Can't help wondering what the situation in Cannes, Nice and Deauville is. Paris is unique in having 6 very high level hotels. In Nice the best known one is the Negresco. In Cannes there are three but I could not name them. Monte Carlo has the Hotel de Paris. There are others but the one's that come to mind are a bit special, like the Ritz in Paris. I have never stayed in any of these. My wife had a client once staying at the Ritz, in fact, the fees she charged that client for considerable research work did not exceed a night's stay in the hotel! They have people in the lobby who somehow know who does and does not belong there. They will stop and ask you want, politely, when you come in a look out of place. It is another world. |
#6
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6 top Paris hotels fined on price fixing
oh evleth reads the herald tribune
"Earl Evleth" a écrit dans le message de news: ... 6 top Paris hotels fined on pricing By Thomas Crampton International Herald Tribune TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2005 PARIS In a five-star case of collusion, six of the most prestigious luxury hotels in Paris were fined Monday for running an illegal price-fixing cartel that at one point pushed their room prices - already among the highest in the world - to an average of more than E700 per night. The Hôtel de Crillon, the Four Seasons Hôtel George V, the Hôtel Ritz, the Hôtel Plaza Athénée, the Hôtel Meurice, and Hôtel Le Bristol were fined a total of E709,000, or $831,000, by the French Competition Council, which issued a 57-page decision replete with e-mail trails and charts detailing how the hotels worked together on a weekly and monthly basis to shift prices. "The investigation showed regular exchanges of confidential information among the six hotels regarding their business and the elements necessary for their marketing plans," the council, a government watchdog charged with stopping market collusion, said in a statement. The fines for the hotels, which are all ranked by the Michelin travel guides at the highest level of luxury, five red stars, were levied in relation to the earnings of the hotels and the length of time they had been involved in price fixing. They ranged from E248,000 for the Hôtel de Crillon to 55,000 for the Hôtel Meurice. The Hôtel George V was fined 115,000; the Hôtel Plaza Athénée, E106,000; the Hôtel Ritz, E104,000; and Le Bristol, E81,000. In the gold-festooned lobby of the Hôtel de Crillon, housed in a building constructed for Louis XV on the Place de la Concorde in the middle of Paris, the communications director declined to make any comment on the fines and insisted that a reporter attempting to speak with guests leave the premises immediately. Room prices in the Crillon, which is owned by the Taittinger family, range from 500 per night for a single room in low season to E8,080 per night for the Bernstein suite, named after Leonard Bernstein, the late American conductor and composer, who stayed there. A frequent guest at the Hôtel Meurice, an opulent hotel that is owned by the Brunei Investment Agency, said he was not surprised by the collusion. "In this level of hotel you can always negotiate the level of prices anyways," said Luc Janssen, a Belgian who stays at the hotel often. Officials of the six hotels spent considerable time on e-mail and in meetings exchanging information in a bid to fix prices, according to the French investigator's report, which came from a four-year investigation of allegations that were first raised in a broadcast by the French television station M6. "I have the pleasure here of sending you our results and await yours," a sales coordinator at the George V, identified only as Madame X, said in an e-mail dated Feb. 2, 2001, sent to counterparts at the Hôtel Ritz, the Hôtel Plaza Athénée, the Hôtel Meurice, the Hôtel de Crillon and Le Bristol. The e-mail included a chart showing levels of occupancy, average room prices and revenue information for the previous December. Employees from other hotels were quoted as sending similar e-mails. A graph toward the end of the report detailed the rise and fall of average room prices over two years, in which there appears to be little variation between the hotels. The French government report highlighted how the hotels dominate the luxury hotel market in central Paris. It described them as occupying "a prestigious site in the center Paris; a high proportion of suites, some of which are exceptional; a gastronomic restaurant; exceptional amenities such as swimming pools or gyms; a large number of personnel at the disposal of guests." As such, the report said, these hotels charge significantly more than the next lesser tier of competitor. James Kanter of the International Herald Tribune contributed to this article. |
#7
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6 top Paris hotels fined on price fixing
"Earl Evleth" a écrit dans le message de news: ... 6 top Paris hotels fined on pricing By Thomas Crampton International Herald Tribune TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2005 PARIS In a five-star case of collusion, six of the most prestigious luxury hotels in Paris were fined Monday for running an illegal price-fixing cartel that at one point pushed their room prices - already among the highest in the world - to an average of more than E700 per night. The Hôtel de Crillon, the Four Seasons Hôtel George V, the Hôtel Ritz, the Hôtel Plaza Athénée, the Hôtel Meurice, and Hôtel Le Bristol were fined a total of E709,000, or $831,000, by the French Competition Council, which issued a 57-page decision replete with e-mail trails and charts detailing how the hotels worked together on a weekly and monthly basis to shift prices. The French Competition Council would have been better advised to use taxpayer's money to investigate collusion among telephone companies, or among internet service providers, or in the building industry, or water distribution, etc. But thanks to them, the jet-set won't have to sleep in the metro this winter. |
#8
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6 top Paris hotels fined on price fixing
"Earl Evleth" wrote in message
... Paris is unique in having 6 very high level hotels. In Nice the best known one is the Negresco. In Cannes there are three That'll be the Majestic, the Carlton and the Martinez. Ian |
#9
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6 top Paris hotels fined on price fixing
"Earl Evleth" wrote in message ... How typically arrogant of them to document the entire thing in professionally haughty emails - as if they were above the law. |
#10
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6 top Paris hotels fined on price fixing
On Tue, 29 Nov 2005 21:42:50 +0100, Earl Evleth
wrote: On 29/11/05 21:06, in article , "Michael" wrote: Can't help wondering what the situation in Cannes, Nice and Deauville is. Paris is unique in having 6 very high level hotels. In Nice the best known one is the Negresco. In Cannes there are three but I could not name them. Monte Carlo has the Hotel de Paris. There are others but the one's that come to mind are a bit special, like the Ritz in Paris. I have never stayed in any of these. My wife had a client once staying at the Ritz, in fact, the fees she charged that client for considerable research work did not exceed a night's stay in the hotel! They have people in the lobby who somehow know who does and does not belong there. They will stop and ask you want, politely, when you come in a look out of place. It is another world. You can get away with ordering an omelette in the restaurants of most of the Grand Hotels. They still give the same high class service with all the incidentals, the bill is higher than you would see at the local bar, but the experience maybe worth it. Tried at the Grande Bretagne in Athens, The Savoy in London, The Carlton in Cannes. Next time in Paris may try the Ritz or The Lutetia. |
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