MAS, AIR ASIA AIRLINES FINE RM 10 MILLION EACH IN ANTI-TRUST CASE

Flag carrier Malaysia Airlines (MAS) and AirAsia have been fined RM10 million each for their short-lived share swap which was found to have distorted the domestic aviation service.

The Malaysia Competition Commission (MyCC) said both airlines had infringed Section 4(2)(b) of the Competition Act 2010 by sharing their markets in their eight-month pact.

“Market sharing is considered a serious infringement under the Act as it is deemed to have the object of significantly preventing, restricting, or distorting competition in any market for goods and services,” said MyCC chairman Tan Sri Siti Norma Yaakob in a statement released in Kuala Lumpur today.

“When businesses agree to share markets, they are agreeing to stop competing at the expense of the consumers,” she said.

Monopolies are not illegal in Malaysia per se, but anti-competitive behaviour is an offence under the Competition Act 2010. 

MyCC deals with allegations of firms partaking in deals that restrict, prevent or distort competition in any market involving goods or services.

The statement said the financial penalties imposed on the two airlines were based on the turnover earned between January 1, 2012 and April 30, 2012 for the Kuala Lumpur-Kuching, Kuala Lumpur-Kota Kinabalu, Kuala Lumpur-Sandakan and Kuala Lumpur-Sibu routes.

Source: The Malaysian Insider...More....