About Us

"People travel to faraway places to watch, in fascination, the kind of people they ignore at home."
Dagobert D. Runes (whoever he is)

 
Advertisement
Home arrow About Us arrow Press Releases arrow COMPLAINT TO OFFICE OF FAIR TRADING
COMPLAINT TO OFFICE OF FAIR TRADING

 

 

British Guild of Travel Writers complains to the Office of Fair Trading over
WH Smith-Penguin “anti-competitive” guidebook deal

 

The British Guild of Travel Writers has issued an official complaint to the Office of Fair Trading over the decision by WH Smith Travel to make publisher Penguin the sole supplier of foreign travel guides in its travel outlets.

“We believe that this is a restrictive vertical agreement, contrary to the Competition Act 1998, between two parties with significant market power in the travel guide market. It will have the effect of restricting competition and consumer choice, and of causing significant detriment to members of our association,” said Chairman Melissa Shales in the letter to the OFT.

The contract means that the Penguin travel imprints of Dorling Kindersley, Rough Guides and Alastair Sawday will be the only foreign travel guides on offer at some 268 WHS Travel stores in airports and railway stations in the UK.

Other publishers marginalised

The move will also mean other popular guides such as Lonely Planet, Bradt, Michelin, Insight, Frommers, Time Out and Berlitz are marginalised and missing out on trade at airports as WHS signed an exclusive deal with BAA earlier this year to service its seven UK airports, including Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted.

Over the last week, the issue has provoked a widespread sense of injustice among British travellers, with scores of critical reports in national newspapers from the Daily Mail to The Independent to The Times, The Economist, plus wide internet and radio coverage including BBC Radio 4’s Today programme and You and Yours.

It prompted author and traveller Michael Palin to tell The Guardian that WH Smith’s move is an “unacceptable restriction of traveller’s choice” and for Margaret Drabble, Chairman of The Society of Authors, to inform Penguin it “should be ashamed”.

The letter added: “We believe that this gives [WH Smith and Penguin] significant market power in the market for travel books. Because of this exclusivity deal, there are no longer any other bookshops at the seven BAA airports, and therefore no alternative outlets available to other publishers.”

The letter was copied to:
• Kate Swann, Chief Executive, WH Smith PLC
• Robert Walker, Chairman, WH Smith PLC
• John Duhigg, Managing Director, Penguin Travel
• Ian McAllister, Chairman, Network Rail
• Iain Coucher, Chief Executive, Network Rail
• Sir Nigel Rudd, Chairman, BAA
• Colin Matthews, CEO, BAA
• Rt Hon Ben Bradshaw MP, Secretary of State for Culture, Media & Sport
• Jeremy Hunt MP, Conservative Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
• Don Foster MP, Liberal Democrat Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
• Gordon Banks MP, Chairman All Party Parliamentary Group on Publishing
• Ian Gibson, Chairman All Party Parliamentary Writers Group

Invitation to booksellers

As well as asking for a boycott of WH Smith and Penguin until such time as this deal is reversed, the Guild is offering to help other booksellers sell travel guides in the run-up to the summer holidays by organising in-store travel events.

“If you stock a wide selection of guidebooks and would like to organise a holiday planning clinic at your store, let us know,” said Melissa Shales. “We’ll see if we can match you up with some of our writers to come and offer the public advice on where and how to plan their holidays, which books will best suit their needs and give them great insider tips. We have experts in almost every destination from Montana to Moldova. After all, what we most want to do is sell as many guidebooks as possible – it’s in everyone’s best interests.”

The British Guild of Travel Writers, founded in 1960, is the UK’s premier professional association for bonafide journalists, editors, photographers, and radio and film broadcasters working in the travel field. It represents some 270 members, many of who are involved as writers, editors or photographers working on foreign travel guides with a big range of publishers, and who are likely to be adversely materially affected by the restrictions on competition introduced by this agreement.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT


The British Guild of Travel Writers (BGTW - www.bgtw.org): Press and PR Co-ordinator, Sarah Monaghan: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it



 
BGTW Press Releases
News from the British Guild of Travel Writers
RSS 2.0
  • 50th ANNIVERSARY YEARBOOK LAUNCHED
    50th Anniversary issue of travel trade's 'bible' unveiled at London's newest landmark hotel (London, Fri 26 Feb 2010) The British Guild of Travel Writers (BGTW) kicked off its 50th anniversary year in style with the launch of a celebratory gold-themed issue of its famous Yearbook at a stylish party hosted by London’s newest and uber-modern hotel, Park Plaza Westminster Bridge. The event was celebrated by more than 350 of the UK’s top travel media and industry professionals in the vast Westminster Ballroom of the 1,000-room £350-million luxury hotel in the heart of London’s buzzing South Bank. Always considered a ‘bible’ and...
  • WINNERS OF BGTW/TRAVELLER MAGAZINE TRAVEL WRITING COMPETITION UNVEILED
    26 February 2010 Celebrating new writing talent An article that succeeded in showing Paris in an entirely new light has been selected as the winning entry of The British Guild of Travel Writers’ 50th Anniversary/Traveller magazine Travel Writing Competition. Launched in association with Traveller magazine and Wexas, The Traveller's Club, the competition invited unpublished travel writers to pen a winning 800-word travel article that brings a destination alive” and attracted more than 200 entries. The winners were announced before an audience of 350 of Britain’s top travel writers, photographers and travel industry professionals on February 25 at London's newest landmark hotel, the Park...
  • BRITISH GUILD OF TRAVEL WRITERS FOCUS ON TENERIFE
    THE SPANISH ISLAND of Tenerife is expecting to find itself in the news spotlight over the coming year after hosting more than 100 journalists, photographers and broadcasters for the AGM of the British Guild of Travel Writers (BGTW). The BGTW members enjoyed five days on the largest of the Canary Islands from 26-31 January and experienced a range of cultural, activity and luxury tours including rainforest walking, whalewatching and Canarian cuisine. The AGM took place at the prestigious five-star Gran Hotel Bahía del Duque in Costa Adeje and was followed by a gala dinner attended by...
  • BRITISH GUILD OF TRAVEL WRITERS SCOOP INDUSTRY AWARDS
    Members of the British Guild of Travel Writers have walked away with a clutch of prizes at Britain’s prestigious new Travel Press Awards announced on 26 November. No fewer than four out of the five awards made for Outstanding Contribution in the field of travel PR and journalism were secured by Guild members. British Guild of Travel Writers’ chairman Melissa Shales said: “The success of our members at these new industry awards is richly deserved and recognition of the high professional standing of the Guild. We are delighted to congratulate them on such an impressive achievement.” The high-profile awards, presented during...
  • BRITISH GUILD OF TRAVEL WRITERS ANNOUNCES TOURISM AWARD WINNERS 2009
    Press Release BRITISH GUILD OF TRAVEL WRITERS ANNOUNCES TOURISM AWARD WINNERS 2009 10 November 2009, London THE WINNERS of the UK travel trade’s most prestigious new tourism project awards were announced at the British Guild of Travel Writers’ Annual Gala Awards Dinner in London on November 8 on the eve of the World Travel Market. The event is the UK’s premier occasion for the travel industry to recognise the world's most innovative and newest tourism projects following nominations from members of the Guild, the premier professional association for bonafide journalists, editors, photographers, and radio and film broadcasters working...
Peter Nunn

Click for full storyPeter specialises in presenting travel news for BBC TV and Radio. Hes a regular contributor to Fast Track on BBC World TV. He is also a presentation and media consultant to several major holiday companies, arlines and hotels. Peter also hosts major conferences.
Read more...

 
     

Login to our site...
(registered users only)

(Click photo to enlarge)

"Geography 'makes' Seattle in the same way that skyscrapers make New York and canals make Venice."

From "Soaked in Seattle: a survivor's guide" , Ferne Arfin, The Sunday Telegraph, 31 March 2008

 

Link to our general newsfeed...

RSS 2.0 button