American Airlines has won more than $15 million in an antitrust lawsuit against travel technology provider Sabre.
A New York court found Sabre guilty of harming competition and charging highly inflated booking fees and ordered the GDS to pay $5 million in damages, which will be trebled plus attorneys’ fees.
The long-running case, which was first filed in 2011, heard the airline accuse Sabre of holding a monopoly over air fare distribution and using it to limit competition and hinder innovation.
American Airlines argued it was forced to accept a contract on Sabre’s terms or it would lose access to Sabre’s system.
Lawyers for American Airlines said Sabre used its power in the industry to "bully" airlines into paying unfair fees and signing unfair contracts that suppress competition and maintain its position. They successfully argued that Sabre had insisted it accept a contract on Sabre’s terms or be cut off from a network of thousands of travel agents globally.
Sabre said in a statement that it continued to believe it had operated "fairly and lawfully." The company said it would seek to have the verdict set aside and, if unsuccessful, pursue an appeal.
American Airlines said: “We are very pleased with the jury’s decision and greatly appreciate the time and effort they expended during the course of this eight-week trial. We have long contended that the contractual provisions at issue – provisions that Sabre has made a condition to participate in its global distribution system – have reinforced Sabre’s market power, stymied competition, and harmed us and the travellers we serve.
“Now that the jury has agreed with us, we hope to see changes in the way our services are sold, and we expect technology and innovation will create even better and more transparent ways for us to distribute our products.”
The case was filed by US Airways in 2011 - which later merged with American Airlines.