dexinwin BEIJING, September 25, 2026— China has expanded regulatory scrutiny of the online hotel and travel-booking sector, with four major platforms — Fliggy, Tongcheng Travel, Tujia and Meituan’s hotel and travel business — now facing formal investigations by Beijing’s market regulator.
The Beijing Municipal Administration for Market Regulation said on September 19 that it had opened investigations into Hangzhou Taomei Aviation Services, Tongcheng Network Technology, Tujia Online Information Technology (Tianjin) and Beijing Sankuai Information Technology over suspected violations of relevant laws, including China’s Anti-Unfair Competition Law and E-Commerce Law.
The companies are associated with Fliggy, Tongcheng Travel, Tujia and Meituan’s online hotel and travel services, respectively.
Importantly, the opening of an investigation doesnotmean that the companies have been found guilty of violating the law. The regulator has yet to announce final findings or penalties.
Four Platforms Say They Will Cooperate
Following the announcement, all four companies said they would cooperate with the investigation and comply with regulatory requirements.
Fliggy said it would actively cooperate with the Beijing market regulator and continue to support a fair and orderly market environment.
Tongcheng Travel said its operations were running normally and that it would cooperate with regulators while continuing to improve compliance.
Tujia said it would fully cooperate with the investigation and strengthen platform governance while continuing to serve property owners, merchants and users.
Meituan said its hotel and travel business would cooperate with the authorities and implement the relevant regulatory requirements.
Investigation Comes After Trip.com Penalty
The latest investigations follow a major regulatory case involving Trip.com.
In July, China’s market regulator imposed a total penalty of about5.18 billion yuan ($770 million)on Trip.com over what regulators said was an abuse of its dominant position in the online hotel-booking market. Reuters reported that the case involved practices that regulators considered restrictive to competition.
The Trip.com case drew significant attention across China's hotel-booking industry because it focused on how a major online platform uses traffic allocation, pricing rules and commercial arrangements with hotels.
The subsequent investigation of four other major platforms indicates that regulatory attention is now extending beyond a single company and into broader competition practices within the online hotel and accommodation sector.
Regulators Focus on “Whole-Network Lowest Prices” and Platform Rules
The investigations also come shortly after a September 15 regulatory guidance meeting for the online hotel-booking industry.
China’s State Administration for Market Regulation and the Ministry of Culture and Tourism held a meeting with major online hotel-booking platforms and called on companies to strengthen compliance and prevent competition risks.
Regulators specifically highlighted issues including exclusive cooperation arrangements and “whole-network lowest-price” requirements, while asking platforms to conduct self-inspections and improve compliance mechanisms.
According to an Economic Observer report, the Beijing market regulator had already entered the four companies for investigation in April. The reported areas of focus included algorithms, marketing and legal affairs, with attention to hotel accommodation businesses, traffic displays, bidding-based rankings, whole-network lowest-price requirements and merchants’ pricing autonomy.
These details have been reported by media outlets and should be distinguished from the regulator's final legal findings, which have not yet been announced.
Why Platform Algorithms Matter
For hotels and accommodation providers, online travel platforms are important sources of traffic and bookings. Search rankings, recommendation algorithms, promotional campaigns and pricing rules can therefore have a direct impact on a merchant's visibility and sales.
A platform's rules can also influence how hotels distribute inventory across different booking channels.
This is why regulators are increasingly examining not only traditional pricing practices, but also the way digital platforms use algorithms, traffic allocation and commercial rules.
The China Hotel Association has also called for greater transparency in areas such as search rankings, traffic allocation, commission rates and promotional programs following the latest investigations.
Potential Impact on Hotels and Consumers
The regulatory scrutiny could have implications for both accommodation providers and consumers.
For hotels and homestays, greater transparency in platform rules could potentially give merchants more flexibility in managing prices, inventory and distribution across different platforms.
For consumers, increased competition between booking platforms could make price comparisons easier and potentially reduce restrictions on where hotels can offer their rooms.
However, the actual impact will depend on the findings of the investigations and any subsequent regulatory measures.
At this stage, there is no basis to conclude that the four companies have committed the suspected violations. The authorities are still investigating the cases.
China’s Online Travel Industry Faces a New Compliance Phase
The sequence of regulatory actions — from the Trip.com case to investigations involving Fliggy, Tongcheng Travel, Tujia and Meituan — shows that competition rules in China's online hotel-booking industry are receiving increased regulatory attention.
The focus is no longer limited to conventional issues such as commissions or promotional pricing. Questions surrounding exclusive arrangements, platform traffic, algorithmic rankings, price requirements and merchants' ability to make independent business decisions are also becoming increasingly important.
For online travel platforms, the challenge will be to balance commercial competition with compliance requirements and the interests of hotels, accommodation providers and consumers.
The latest four investigations remain ongoing. Their eventual findings and any regulatory decisions could provide further clarity on how China intends to regulate competition and platform practices in the rapidly evolving online travel and accommodation market.
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