Services for Spain’s state-owned rail operator Renfe will soon become more widely accessible via third-party distribution channels following an EU decision this week to open up online rail ticketing in the country.
The European Commission on Wednesday (17 January) formally accepted commitments from the rail operator to improve competition in Spain’s online rail ticketing sector following an EU Antitrust investigation in 2023 over allegations that Renfe abused its dominant market position by refusing to provide third-party platforms with its full range of content and real-time data related to its rail services.
Renfe has since committed to make all current and future content and real-time data available to third-party ticketing platforms. According the rail operator, its current content and real-time data will be made available by 29 February “at the latest”, with some exceptions made for real-time data for which Renfe is required to launch a tender procedure to grant access.
The commitments also include a 'non-circumvention' clause whereby Renfe commits not to use any “unfair, not reasonable or discriminatory” technical or commercial measures that would impede access to and distribution of its content and real-time data.
European competition commissioner Margrethe Vestager said the move is a “crucial” step towards creating more affordable rail services and promoting environmentally-friendly means of transport.
“From now on, independent ticketing platforms will have access to all the information necessary to innovate and compete effectively with Renfe’s online distribution channels,” Vestager said in a statement.
The Renfe decision is the latest in a series to address anti-competitive practices across the European travel sector, mirroring the landmark case by the German Competition Authority against Deutsche Bahn and the ongoing investigation of the Italian Competition Authority against Ryanair.
Lobbying group EU Travel Tech has also applauded the Commission’s decision on Renfe, calling it an “important milestone towards rendering rail tickets widely searchable and bookable across the EU”.
EU Travel Tech secretary general Emmanuel Mounier said the Spanish rail operator’s commitments “show that a systemic solution is needed to ensure that tickets of important operators can be distributed widely”.
He also urged EU policymakers “to closely consider these insights and tackle problematic practices of incumbent operators” as part of the upcoming Multimodal Digital Mobility Services (MDMS) regulation.
Echoing these comments, Trainline CEO Jody Ford said the decision is a “major win” for rail passengers and sustainable travel.
In a statement, the rail specialist said the move establishes a “new precedent” regarding parity of access for third-party ticket distributors in Europe.
“Access to the same data, fares, features, and content as offered by the train companies will put greater choice, innovation and value into the hands of the customer... We look forward to working with Renfe to ensure these benefits are realised for passengers as soon as possible,” the company said.