Paris - Amsterdam - Barcelona
Authors: Rosalie Koolhoven, Neppelenbroek, Santamaria, Verdi (Working Group on the Collaborative Economy)
University of Groningen, the Netherlands
Date Published: March 2016
Research commissioned by: the European Commission
Why did we select this case?
This report can help city governments understand how EU law applies to the accomodation sharing sector.
Key findings
This study explores liability issues of accommodation sharing in Barcelona, Paris, and Amsterdam. In general, all 3 cities are working to find out, prepare, and overcome challenges from accommodation sharing. The paper pointed out that Intermediation (i.e., Airbnb) gives rise to unfair competition between such platforms and professional agents who had to acquire certain qualification to participate in the industry. The author also suggest that more studies should be conducted on the issue of safety regulations in peer to peer service providers.
There are unclear boundaries that must be discussed and distinguished between professional service providers and peer to peer service providers, as well as, whether E-commerce law imposed on webshops should upheld by accommodation providers.
Reference
Koolhoven, R. (2016). Impulse paper on specific liability issues raised by the collaborative economy in the accommodation sector. Retrieved from: http://ec.europa.eu/DocsRoom/documents/16946/attachments/1/translations
