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Showing posts with label Fight. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Fight. Show all posts
Tuesday, 5 November 2013
U.S. Justice Dept hopes to settle American, US Airways fight
Asian shares struggle, euro dips ahead of ECBReuters
Justice Department details deal for American, US Airways fight
By Diane Bartz
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Justice Department wants US Airways and American Airlines to divest landing and take-off slots at Reagan National and other "key" U.S. airports as a condition to drop its effort to block a proposed merger, Attorney General Eric Holder said on Monday.
Share prices in the airlines jumped as Holder seemed to offer a path to an agreement, three weeks before the scheduled start of a trial on November 25.
The bankrupt AMR Corp (AAMRQ.PK), parent of American Airlines, closed up 24.5 percent in heavy volume, while those of US Airways (LCC) at one point rose more than 5 percent to their highest in almost six years before retreating to close up 1.2 percent.
Holder said that talks with the companies were ongoing and he hoped for an agreement before the trial is due to start.
The Justice Department's complaint focused on the carriers' dominant position at Reagan National, outside Washington, and on more than 1,000 city pairings that American and US Airways now dominate. It said the merger would reduce choice for travelers and lead to higher fares.
Holder would not elaborate on Monday about whether the government has a specific number of slots in mind that the carriers need to sell to advance the deal. There were a "number of ways" to address the government's concerns, he said.
"What we have tried to focus on is to make sure that any resolution in this case necessarily includes divestitures of facilities at key constrained airports throughout the United States," Holder said.
"We hope that we will be able to resolve this short of trial, but if we do not meet those demands that we have, we are fully prepared to take this case to trial," he said. "We will not agree to something that does not fundamentally resolve the concerns that were expressed in the complaint."
Experts said it is unusual for an attorney general to comment at length in the middle of antitrust battle.
"I think it's a positive sign (of potential settlement), but it's important not to over-read it," Herbert Hovenkamp, an antitrust expert who teaches at the University of Iowa's College of Law, said of Holder's comments.
Several antitrust specialists were surprised by the share price increases, which suggested that investors saw Holder's utterances as a tipping point in favor of the merger.
Three said Holder essentially backed up previous comments from his antitrust deputy, Bill Baer, by insisting that the merger created antitrust problems in a number of markets nationally.
"Bill Baer can now sit there and say "'You heard from the boss. What can I do?'...This is a message to the parties," said Steve Axinn, a Justice Department veteran now at the law firm Axinn Veltrop and Harkrider LLP.
Seth Bloom, a former staffer for the Senate Judiciary Committee's antitrust subcommittee, agreed the comments did not necessarily signal that a quick settlement was in the works.
"He's saying you need divestitures nationally...and so the airlines have to make a fundamental change in their merger proposals," he said. "It's a very difficult case to settle."
Three weeks before the scheduled start of the trial, US Airways and American Airlines can agree to a package of divestitures, prepare to litigate, or abandon a merger that has been years in the making, Hovenkamp said.
"The government is asking for a lot and the parties want to give up as little as possible," Hovenkamp added.
DOMINANT AT REAGAN NATIONAL
The two carriers control a combined 69 percent of takeoff and landing slots at Reagan National, an airport used by many members of Congress to fly to their home districts.
Roughly 55 percent of slots at the airport are held by US Airways and 14 percent held by American. Airline officials have said privately that they are willing to cede some slots, but not scale back by the equivalent of the entire 14-percent American share.
US Airways declined comment on Holder's remarks. American Airlines did not respond to requests for comment.
(Additional reporting by David Ingram in Washington and Karen Jacobs in Atlanta; Editing by Ros Krasny, Lisa Von Ahnn, L Gevirtz and Ken Wills)
Monday, 4 November 2013
U.S. Justice Dept details deal for American, US Airways fight
* AMR Corp shares spike up 24.5 percent
* US Airways stock reaches highest level in nearly 6 years
* Holder - could resolve merger concerns before scheduled trial
By Diane Bartz
WASHINGTON, Nov 4 (Reuters) - The U.S. Justice Department wants US Airways and American Airlines to divest landing and take-off slots at Reagan National and other "key" U.S. airports as a condition to drop its effort to block a proposed merger, Attorney General Eric Holder said on Monday.
Share prices in the airlines jumped as Holder seemed to offer a path to an agreement, three weeks before the scheduled start of a trial on Nov. 25.
The bankrupt AMR Corp, parent of American Airlines, closed up 24.5 percent in heavy volume, while those of US Airways at one point rose more than 5 percent to their highest in almost six years before retreating to close up 1.2 percent.
Holder said that talks with the companies were ongoing and he hoped for an agreement before the trial is due to start.
The Justice Department's complaint focused on the carriers' dominant position at Reagan National, outside Washington, and on more than 1,000 city pairings that American and US Airways now dominate. It said the merger would reduce choice for travelers and lead to higher fares.
Holder would not elaborate on Monday about whether the government has a specific number of slots in mind that the carriers need to sell to advance the deal. There were a "number of ways" to address the government's concerns, he said.
"What we have tried to focus on is to make sure that any resolution in this case necessarily includes divestitures of facilities at key constrained airports throughout the United States," Holder said.
"We hope that we will be able to resolve this short of trial, but if we do not meet those demands that we have, we are fully prepared to take this case to trial," he said. "We will not agree to something that does not fundamentally resolve the concerns that were expressed in the complaint."
Experts said it is unusual for an attorney general to comment at length in the middle of antitrust battle.
"I think it's a positive sign (of potential settlement), but it's important not to over-read it," Herbert Hovenkamp, an antitrust expert who teaches at the University of Iowa's College of Law, said of Holder's comments.
Several antitrust specialists were surprised by the share price increases, which suggested that investors saw Holder's utterances as a tipping point in favor of the merger.
Three said Holder essentially backed up previous comments from his antitrust deputy, Bill Baer, by insisting that the merger created antitrust problems in a number of markets nationally.
"Bill Baer can now sit there and say "'You heard from the boss. What can I do?'...This is a message to the parties," said Steve Axinn, a Justice Department veteran now at the law firm Axinn Veltrop and Harkrider LLP.
Seth Bloom, a former staffer for the Senate Judiciary Committee's antitrust subcommittee, agreed the comments did not necessarily signal that a quick settlement was in the works.
"He's saying you need divestitures nationally...and so the airlines have to make a fundamental change in their merger proposals," he said. "It's a very difficult case to settle."
Three weeks before the scheduled start of the trial, US Airways and American Airlines can agree to a package of divestitures, prepare to litigate, or abandon a merger that has been years in the making, Hovenkamp said.
"The government is asking for a lot and the parties want to give up as little as possible," Hovenkamp added.
DOMINANT AT REAGAN NATIONAL
The two carriers control a combined 69 percent of takeoff and landing slots at Reagan National, an airport used by many members of Congress to fly to their home districts.
Roughly 55 percent of slots at the airport are held by US Airways and 14 percent held by American. Airline officials have said privately that they are willing to cede some slots, but not scale back by the equivalent of the entire 14-percent American share.
US Airways declined comment on Holder's remarks. American Airlines did not respond to requests for comment.
Wednesday, 10 July 2013
HeBS Digital Empowers Hoteliers to Fight Back and Shift Share from the OTAs with a 20% Off Summer Promotion
HeBS Digital invites hoteliers to 'Shift Share from the OTAs to the Property Website' with a Summer promotion, offering substantial savings of 20% off website design packages for the Three Screens (desktop, mobile, tablet).
HeBS Digital, the leading hospitality digital marketing, technology and direct online strategy firm, is pleased to announce a 20% off “Shift Share from the OTAs to the Property Website” promotion. Hoteliers who partner with HeBS Digital this summer will receive 20% off any website design package for desktop, mobile and tablet.
This promotion was specifically designed to help hoteliers lessen their dependency on the OTAs and drive more direct bookings through the property website. Independent hotels are particularly OTA-dependent: Last year, more than 76 percent of online bookings for non-branded hotels came from the OTAs and just 24 percent came from the hotels’ own websites (STR, HSMAI Foundation).
The “Shift Share from the OTAs to the Property Website” package includes: 20% off a website design package, including desktop, mobile and tabletOne hour customized best practices workshopAction plan for driving direct online bookingsHotel website and online presence analysis “The industry is feeling the pain from OTA dependency now more than ever and hotel owners, managers and franchisees are urgently trying to devise ways to lessen their exposure to the OTA channel” said Max Starkov, President & CEO of HeBS Digital. “Now more than ever, the main focus and priority for any hotelier should be to sell as much inventory via the hotel website as possible. The hotel website is the most cost-effective distribution channel that also preserves rate parity and price erosion. Simultaneously with an up-to-par hotel website, hoteliers should be taking full advantage of “traditional” ROI-focused direct online channel initiatives such as SEO, SEM, online media and re-targeting, as well the new meta search marketing initiatives such as Google Hotel Price Ads, TripAdvisor Meta Search, Trivago, Kayak, etc.”
The hospitality industry’s overdependence on the OTA channel is painfully visible. It is time for the industry to fight back and shift share from the OTAs to the direct online channel i.e. to the hotel website. HeBS Digital gives hoteliers the tools needed to increase direct online channel bookings and dramatically improve the hotel’s bottom line.
Hoteliers interested in partnering with HeBS Digital and learning more about this package can click here.
About HeBS Digital:
Founded in 2001, HeBS Digital is the hospitality industry’s leading full-service digital marketing, hotel website design and online channel strategy firm, based in New York City (www.HeBSDigital.com).
HeBS Digital has pioneered many of the best practices in hotel Internet marketing, social and mobile marketing, and direct online channel distribution. The firm has won over 250 prestigious industry awards for its digital marketing and website design services, including numerous Adrian Awards, Davey Awards, W3 Awards, WebAwards, Magellan Awards, Summit International Awards, Interactive Media Awards, IAC Awards, etc.
A diverse client portfolio of top-tier major hotel brands, luxury and boutique hotel brands, resorts and casinos, hotel management companies, franchisees and independents, and CVBs are benefiting from HeBS Digital’s direct online channel strategy and digital marketing expertise. Contact HeBS Digital’s consultants at (212) 752-8186 or success@hebsdigital.com.
Editorial Contact:
Mariana Mechoso Safer
HeBS Digital
Phone: 212-752-8186
Email: mariana@hebsdigital.com
Web: http://www.hebsdigital.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/hebsdigital
Twitter: https://twitter.com/HeBS_NYC
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/company/hebs-digital
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