EU Court Upholds EC Block of Booking/Etraveli Merger
The EU General Court has dismissed Booking's challenge to the European Commission's prohibition of its acquisition of Etraveli, reinforcing the regulator's tough stance on platform mergers.
On September 9, 2026, the European Union's General Court dismissed Booking Holdings Inc.’s challenge to the European Commission’s prohibition of its proposed acquisition of flight-booking platform Etraveli Group. The ruling validates the Commission's increasingly assertive merger-enforcement policy, particularly regarding dominant digital platforms acquiring smaller players in adjacent markets.
Sophisticated counsel and clients in the technology and M&A spaces care because the decision strengthens the EC’s hand in blocking "killer acquisitions" or deals that risk entrenching a platform's dominant ecosystem. The court’s acceptance of the regulator's theory of harm, even where the immediate market-share accretion may appear small, signals a high and potentially unpredictable bar for future platform deals in Europe. The ruling underscores the need for M&A advisors to account for significant regulatory risk in such transactions.
An appeal to the EU Court of Justice may follow. In the interim, dealmakers for established platforms must anticipate deep scrutiny of any acquisition that could be seen as cementing a strategic market position.