Rate Parity Ends in Europe: Why AI Price Comparison Finally Rewards Direct Bookings
The short answer Rate parity is over in the European Economic Area — and as of September 28, 2026, the European Commission has put that in writing, with teeth. Hotels, car rentals and other accommodation providers active on Booking.com in the EEA can freely set their prices and conditions on and off the platform, including on their own direct channel. Booking.com no longer uses external prices for its default ranking, for Genius, Preferred or Preferred Plus eligibility — and, as of September 2026, not even for its Booking Sponsored Benefit. The “competitive” and “non-competitive” labels that used to appear in the Extranet have been removed entirely (European Commission DMA factsheet, September 28, 2026). ...