CODE OF CONDUCT FOR COMPUTERISED RESERVATION SYSTEMS ACT

CODE OF CONDUCT FOR

COMPUTERISED RESERVATION SYSTEMS

CHAPTER 434

CODE OF CONDUCT FOR COMPUTERISED

RESERVATION SYSTEMS ACT

To provide for a code of conduct for computerised reservation systems.

1st October, 2002

ACT XIX of 2001 , as amended by Legal Notice 426 of 2007 .

The short title of this Act is the Code of Conduct for

Computerised Reservation Systems Act.

P RINCIPAL D ISPLAY R ANKING C RITERIA FOR F LIGHTS*

OFFERING U NBUNDLED A IR T RANSPORT P RODUCTS

(Articles 5, 7 and 16)

1. Ranking of flight options in a principal display, for the day or

days requested, shall be in the following order unless

requested in a different way by a consumer for an individual

transaction

(i)

all non-stop direct flights between the city-pairs

concerned;

(ii) all other direct flights, not involving a change of

aircraft or train, between the city-pairs

concerned;

(iii) connecting flights.

2. A consumer shall at least be afforded the possibility of

having, on request, a principal display ranked by departure or

arrival time and/or elapsed journey time. Unless otherwise

requested by a consumer, a principal display shall be ranked

by departure time for group (i) and elapsed journey time for

groups (ii) and (iii).

3. Where a system vendor chooses to display information for

any city-pair in relation to the schedules or fares of non-

*All references to "flights" in this Schedule are in accordance with article 16(6) of the

Act.

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participating carriers, but not necessarily all such carriers,

such information shall be displayed in an accurate, non-

misleading and non-discriminatory manner between carriers

displayed.

4. If, to the system vendor’s knowledge, information on the

number of direct scheduled air services and the identity of the

air carriers concerned is not comprehensive, this shall be

clearly stated on the relevant display.

5. Flights other than scheduled air services shall be clearly

identified.

6. Flights involving stops en route shall be clearly identified.

7. Where flights are operated by an air carrier which is not the

air carrier identified by the carrier designator code, the actual

operator of the flight shall be clearly identified. This

requirement shall apply in all cases, except for short-term ad

hoc arrangements.

8. A system vendor shall not use the screen space in a principal

display in a manner which gives excessive exposure to one

particular travel option or which displays unrealistic travel

options.

9. Except as provided for in paragraph 10, the following

provisions shall apply

(a) for direct services, no flight may be featured more than

once in a principal display;

(b) for multi-sector services involving a change of

aircraft, no combination of flights may be featured

more than once in a principal display;

(c) flights involving a change of aircraft shall be treated

and displayed as connecting flights, with one line per

aircraft segment. Nevertheless, where the flights are

operated by the same carrier with the same flight

number and where a carrier requires only one flight

coupon and one reservation, a computerized

reservation system should issue only one coupon and

shall charge for only one reservation.

10. (1) Where participating carriers have joint-venture or other

contractual arrangements requiring two or more of them

to assume separate responsibility for the offer and sale of

air transport products on a flight or combination of

flights, the terms "flight" (for direct services) and

"combination of flights" (for multi-sector services) in

paragraph 9 shall be interpreted as allowing each of the

carriers concerned, up to a maximum of two, to have a

separate display using its individual carrier designator

code.

(2) Where more than two carriers are involved, designation

of the two carriers entitled to avail themselves of the

exception provided for in sub-paragraph (1) shall be a

matter for the carrier actually operating the flight. In the

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absence of information from the operating carrier

sufficient to identify the two carriers to be designated, a

system vendor shall designate the carriers on a non-

discriminatory basis.

11. A principal display shall, wherever practicable, include

connecting flights on scheduled services which are operated

by participating carriers and are constructed by using a

minimum number of nine connecting points. A system vendor

shall accept a request by a participating carrier to include an

indirect service, unless the routing is in excess of 130% of the

great circle distance between the two airports or unless that

would lead to the exclusion of services with a shorter elapsed

journey time. Connecting points with routings in excess of

130% need not be used.

In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires -

"air transport product" includes both unbundled and bundled air

transport products;

"Board" means the Computerised Reservation Systems Board

established under article 19;

"bundled air transport product" means a pre-arranged

combination of an unbundled air transport product with other

services not ancillary to air transport, offered for sale and, or, sold

at an inclusive price;

"bundled rail transport product" means a pre-arranged

combination of an unbundled rail transport product with other

services not ancillary to rail transport, offered for sale or sold at an

inclusive price;

"computerized reservation system" means a computerized system

containing information with regard to, inter alia, air carriers’ -

(a)

schedules;

(b)

availability;

(c)

fares; and

(d)

related services;

with or without facilities through which -

(a) reservations may be made; or

(b) tickets may be issued,

to the extent that some or all of these services are made available to

subscribers;

"consumer" means any person seeking information about or

intending to purchase an air transport product for private use;

"Director" means the Director of Civil Aviation and includes, to

the extent of the authority given, any person authorised in that

behalf by the Director;

"distribution facilities" means facilities provided by a system

vendor for the provision of information about air carriers’

schedules, availability, fares and related services and for making

reservations and, or issuing tickets, and for any other related

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services;

"duplicate reservation" means a situation which arises when two

or more reservations are made for the same passenger when it is

evident that the passenger may not be able to use more than one;

"effective control" means a relationship constituted by rights,

contracts or any other means which, either separately or jointly and

having regard to the considerations of fact or law involved, confer

the possibility of directly or indirectly exercising a decisive

influence on an undertaking, in particular by the -

(a) right to use all or part of the assets of an undertaking;

and

(b) rights or contracts which confer a decisive influence

on the composition, voting or decisions of the bodies

of an undertaking or otherwise confer a decisive

influence on the running of the business of the

undertaking;

"elapsed journey time" means the time difference between

scheduled departure and arrival time;

"fare" means the price to be paid for unbundled air transport

products and the conditions under which this price applies;

"Minister" means the Minister responsible for Civil Aviation,

and includes, to the extent of the authority given, any officer

authorised by him, in writing, to act in that behalf for any of the

purposes of this Act;

"parent carrier" means any air carrier which directly or

indirectly, alone or jointly with others, owns or effectively controls

a system vendor, and includes any air carrier which it owns or

effectively controls;

"participating carrier" means an air carrier which has an

agreement with a system vendor for the distribution of air transport

products through a computerized reservation system. To the extent

that a parent carrier uses the facilities of its own computerized

reservation system covered by this Act, it shall be considered a

participating carrier;

"principal display" means a comprehensive neutral display of

data concerning air services between city-pairs, within a specified

time period;

"rail transport product" includes both unbundled and bundled rail

transport products;

"service enhancement" means any product or service offered by a

system vendor on its own behalf to subscribers, in conjunction with

a computerized reservation system, other than distribution

facilities;

"scheduled air service" means a series of flights all possessing

the following characteristics

(a) performed by aircraft for the transport of passengers or

passengers and cargo and, or, mail for remuneration, in

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COMPUTERISED RESERVATION SYSTEMS

such a manner that seats are available on each flight

for individual purchase by consumers, either directly

from the air carrier or from its authorized agents;

(b) operated so as to serve traffic between the same two or

more points, either -

(i) according to a published timetable; or

(ii) with flights so regular or frequent that they

constitute a recognizably systematic series;

"subscriber" means a person, other than a consumer, or an

u n d e r t a k i n g , o t h e r t h a n a p a r t i c i p a t i n g c a r r i e r, u s i n g a

computerized reservation system under contract or other financial

arrangement with a system vendor. A financial arrangement shall

be deemed to exist where a specific payment is made for the

services of the system vendor or where an air transport product is

purchased;

"system vendor" means any entity and its affiliates which is

responsible for the operation or marketing of a computerized

reservation system;

"ticket" means a valid document giving entitlement to transport,

or an equivalent in paperless, including electronic, form issued or

authorised by the carrier or its authorised agent;

"unbundled air transport product" means the carriage by air of a

passenger between two airports, including any related ancillary

services and additional benefits offered for sale and, or, sold as an

integral part of that product;

"unbundled rail transport product" means the carriage of a

passenger between two stations by rail, including any related

ancillary services and additional benefits offered for sale or sold as

an integral part of that product.

U SE OF D ISTRIBUTION F ACILITIES BY S UBSCRIBERS

(Articles 12 and 13)

1. A subscriber shall keep accurate records covering all

transactions concluded through the computerized reservation

system. Those records shall include flight numbers,

reservations booking designators, date of travel, departure

and arrival times, status of segments, names and initials of

passengers with their contact addresses and/or telephone

numbers and ticketing status. When booking or cancelling

space, the subscriber shall ensure that the reservation

designator being used corresponds to the fare paid by the

passenger.

2. A subscriber shall not deliberately make duplicate

reservations for the same passenger. Where confirmed space

is not available, the passenger may, at his choice, be wait-

listed on that flight (if wait-list is available) and confirmed on

an alternative flight.

3. When a passenger cancels a reservation, the subscriber shall

immediately release that space.

4. When a passenger changes an itinerary, the subscriber shall

ensure that all space and supplementary services are

cancelled when the new reservations are made.

5. A subscriber shall, where practicable, request or process all

reservations for a specific itinerary and all subsequent

changes through the same computerized reservation system.

6. No subscriber may request or sell airline space unless

requested to do so by a consumer.

7. A subscriber shall ensure that a ticket is issued in accordance

with the reservation status of each segment and in accordance

with the applicable time limit. A subscriber shall not issue a

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ticket indicating a definite reservation and a particular flight

unless confirmation of that reservation has been received.

(1) A system vendor shall have the capacity, in its own

name as a separate entity from the parent carrier, to have rights and

obligations of all kinds, to enter into contracts, inter alia, with

parent carriers, participating carriers and subscribers, or to

accomplish other legal acts and to sue and be sued.

(2) A system vendor shall, subject to any technical constraints

outside the control of the system vendor, allow any air carrier to

participate, on an equal and non-discriminatory basis, in its

distribution facilities within the available capacity of the system

concerned.

(3)

(a) A system vendor shall not -

(i)

attach unreasonable conditions to any contract

with a participating carrier;

(ii) require the acceptance of supplementary

conditions which, by their nature or according to

commercial usage, have no connection with

participation in its computerized reservation

system and shall apply the same conditions for

the same level of service.

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(b) A system vendor shall not make it a condition of

participation in its computerized reservation system that a

participating carrier may not at the same time be a participant in

another system.

(c) A participating carrier may terminate its contract with

a system vendor by giving such notice, as may be stipulated, for the

contract to expire. In such a case, a system vendor shall not be

entitled to recover more than the costs directly related to the

termination of the contract

Provided that no notice of more than six months may be

stipulated, and that the provisions of this paragraph shall not apply

if the contract is terminated before the first year of the contract

Provided further that a participating carrier may give a

longer notice than that stipulated.

(4) If a system vendor decides to add any improvement to the

distribution facilities provided or the equipment used in the

provision of the facilities, it shall give information on, and offer

these improvements to, all participating carriers, including parent

carriers, with equal timeliness and on the same terms and

conditions, subject to any technical constraints outside the control

of the system vendor, and in such a way that there may be no

d i ff e r e n c e i n l e a d t i m e f o r t h e i m p l e m e n t a t i o n o f t h e n e w

improvements between parent and participating carriers.

(1) (a)A parent carrier may not discriminate against a

competing computerized reservation system by refusing to provide

the latter, on request and with equal timeliness, with the same

information on schedules, fares and availability relating to its own

air services as that which it provides to its own computerized

reservation system or by refusing to distribute its air transport

products through another computerized reservation system, or by

refusing to accept or to confirm with equal timeliness a reservation

made through a competing computerized reservation system for any

of its air transport products which are distributed through its own

computerized reservation system. The parent carrier shall be

obliged to accept and to confirm only those bookings which are in

conformity with its fares and conditions.

(b) The parent carrier shall not be obliged to pay any costs

in this connection except those in connection with the reproduction

of the information to be provided and for accepted bookings. The

booking fee payable to a computerized reservation system for an

accepted booking made in accordance with this article shall not

exceed the fee charged by the same computerized reservation

system to participating carriers for an equivalent transaction.

(c) The parent carrier shall be entitled to carry out controls

to ensure that the provisions of article 7(1) are adhered to by the

competing computerized reservation system.

(2) The provisions of this article shall not apply in relation to a

competing computerized reservation system which has been found,

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by the Board, to have obtained information by any unauthorised

means.

(1) (a)Participating carriers and other providers of air

transport products shall ensure that the data which they submit to a

computerized reservation system are accurate, non-misleading,

transparent and no less comprehensive than that submitted to any

other computerized reservation system. The data shall be such as to

enable a system vendor to meet the requirements of the ranking

criteria as set out in the First Schedule.

(b)Intermediaries shall not manipulate data submitted

to them in a manner which leads to inaccurate, misleading or

discriminatory information.

(c)The provisions of paragraphs (a) and (b) shall,

mutatis mutandis, also apply to rail services in respect of data

provided for inclusion in the principal display.

(2) (a) A system vendor shall not manipulate the material

referred to in subarticle (1) in a manner which would lead to the

provision of inaccurate, misleading or discriminatory information.

(b) A system vendor shall load and process data provided

by all participating carriers with equal care and timeliness, subject

only to the constraints of the loading method selected by individual

participating carriers and to the standard formats used by the said

vendor.

(1) Loading and, or, processing facilities provided by a

system vendor shall be offered to all parent and participating

carriers without discrimination. Where relevant and generally

accepted air transport industry standards are available, system

vendors shall offer facilities compatible with the same.

(2) A system vendor shall not reserve any specific loading and,

or, processing procedure or any other distribution facility for one or

more of its parent carriers.

(3) A system vendor shall ensure that its distribution facilities

are separated, in a clear and verifiable manner, from any carrier’s

private inventory and management and marketing facilities.

Separation may be established either by means of software or

physically in such a way that any connection between the

distribution facilities and the private facilities may only be

achieved by means of an application-to-application interface.

Irrespective of the method of separation adopted, any such

interface shall be made available to all parent and participating

carriers on a non-discriminatory basis and shall provide equality of

treatment in respect of procedures, protocols, inputs and outputs.

Where relevant and generally accepted air transport industry

standards are available, system vendors shall offer interfaces

compatible with them.

(4) The system vendor shall ensure that any third parties

providing computerized reservation system services in whole or in

part on its behalf comply with the relevant provisions of this Act.

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(1) (a)Displays generated by a computerized reservation

system shall be clear and non-discriminatory.

(b)A system vendor shall not intentionally or

negligently display inaccurate or misleading information in its

computerized reservation system.

(2) (a) A system vendor shall provide a principal display or

displays for each individual transaction through its computerized

reservation system and shall include therein the data provided by

participating carriers on flight schedules, fare types and seat

availability in a clear and comprehensive manner and without

discrimination or bias, in particular as regards the order in which

information is presented.

(b) A consumer shall be entitled to have, on request, a

principal display limited to either scheduled or non-scheduled

services only.

(c) No discrimination on the basis of airports serving the

same city shall be exercised in constructing and selecting flights for

a given city-pair for inclusion in a principal display.

(d) Ranking of flight options in a principal display shall be

as set out in the First Schedule.

(e) Criteria to be used for ranking shall not be based on

any factor directly or indirectly relating to carrier identity and shall

be applied on a non-discriminatory basis to all participating

carriers.

(3) Where a system vendor provides information on fares, the

display shall be neutral and non-discriminatory and shall contain at

least the fares provided for all flights of participating carriers

shown in the principal display. The source of such information

must be acceptable to the participating carrier and system vendor

concerned.

(4) Information on bundled products regarding, inter alia, the

tour organizer, availability and prices, shall not be featured in the

principal display.

(5) A computerized reservation system shall not be considered

to be in breach of the provisions of this Act to the extent that it

changes a display in order to meet the specific request or requests

of a consumer.

(1) The following provisions shall govern the availability

of information, statistical or otherwise, by a system vendor from its

computerized reservation system

(a) information

concerning

identifiable

individual

bookings shall be provided on an equal basis and only

to the air carrier or carriers participating in the service

covered and to the subscribers involved in the

booking. Information under the control of the system

vendor concerning identifiable individual bookings

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shall be archived off-line within seventy-two hours of

the completion of the last element in the individual

booking and destroyed within three years. Access to

such data shall, without prejudice to any power of the

police or other authority in connection with criminal

investigations or national security, be allowed only for

reasons relating to disputes concerning billing;

(b) any marketing, booking and sales data shall only be

made available on the basis that -

(i) such data are offered with equal timeliness and

on a non-discriminatory basis to all participating

carriers, including parent carriers;

(ii) such data may and, on request, shall cover all

participating carriers and, or subscribers, but

shall include no identification, either directly or

indirectly, of, or personal information on, a

passenger or a corporate user;

(iii) all requests for such data are treated with equal

care and timeliness subject to the transmission

method selected by the individual carrier;

(iv) information is made available on request to

participating carriers and subscribers both

globally and selectively with regard to the

market in which they operate;

(v) a group of airlines and, or subscribers is entitled

to purchase data for common processing.

(2) A system vendor shall not make personal information

concerning a passenger available to others not involved in the

transaction without the consent of the passenger.

(3) A system vendor shall ensure that the provisions of

subarticles (1) and (2) are complied with, by technical means and,

or appropriate safeguards, in such a way that information provided

by or created for air carriers shall in no way be accessed by one or

more of the parent carriers except as permitted by this Act.

(1) The obligations of a system vendor under articles 3, 5,

6, 7 and 8 shall not apply in respect of a parent carrier of a country

other than Malta to the extent that its computerized reservation

system outside the territory of Malta does not offer Maltese air

carriers equivalent treatment to that provided under this Act.

(2) The obligations of parent or participating carriers under

articles 4, 5 and 10 shall not apply in respect of a computerized

reservation system controlled by an air carrier of one or more

countries other than Malta to the extent that, outside the territory of

Malta, the parent or participating carrier is not accorded equivalent

treatment to that provided under this Act.

(1) A parent carrier shall not, directly or indirectly, link

the use of any specific computerized reservation system by a

subscriber with the receipt of any commission or other incentive or

disincentive for the sale of air transport products available on its

flights.

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(2) A parent carrier shall not, directly or indirectly, require the

use of any specific computerized reservation system by a

subscriber for the sale or issue of tickets for any air transport

products directly or indirectly provided by the said parent carrier.

(3) An air carrier shall not, when authorizing a travel agent to

sell and issue tickets for the air carrier’s air transport products,

impose any condition, on the travel agent, which runs counter to the

provisions of subarticles (1) or (2).

(1) A system vendor shall make any of the distribution

facilities of a computerized reservation system available to any

subscriber on a non-discriminatory basis.

(2) A system vendor shall not require a subscriber to sign an

exclusive contract, nor directly or indirectly prevent a subscriber

from subscribing to, or using, any other system or systems.

(3) A service enhancement offered to any one subscriber shall

be offered by the system vendor to all subscribers on a non-

discriminatory basis.

(4) (a) A system vendor shall not attach unreasonable

conditions to any subscriber contract allowing for the use of its

computerized reservation system and, in particular, a subscriber

may terminate its contract with a system vendor by giving such

notice, as may be stipulated, for the contract to expire. In such a

case, a system vendor shall not be entitled to recover more than the

costs directly related to the termination of the contract

Provided that no notice of more than three months may be

stipulated, and that the provisions of this paragraph shall not apply

if the contract is terminated before the first year of the contract

Provided further that a subscriber may give a longer notice

than that stipulated.

(b) Subject to the provisions of subarticle (2), the supply

of technical equipment by the system vendor shall not be subject to

any of the conditions set out in paragraph (a).

(5)

A system vendor shall, in each subscriber contract, make

provision for -

(a) the principal display, in conformity with article 7, to

be accessed for each individual transaction, except

where a consumer requests information for only one

air carrier or where the consumer requests information

only for bundled air transport products; and

(b) the subscriber not to manipulate material supplied by

computerized reservation systems in a manner which

would lead to inaccurate, misleading or discriminatory

presentation of information to consumers.

(6) A system vendor may not impose an obligation on a

subscriber to accept an offer of technical equipment or software,

but may require that equipment and software used be compatible

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with its own system.

(1) (a)In the case of information provided by a

computerized reservation system, a subscriber shall use a neutral

display in accordance with article 7(2)(a) and (b) unless another

display is required to meet a preference indicated by a consumer.

(b) No subscriber shall manipulate information provided

by a computerized reservation system in a manner that leads to

inaccurate, misleading or discriminatory presentation of that

information to any consumer.

(c) A subscriber shall make reservations and issue tickets

in accordance with the information contained in the computerized

reservation system used, or as authorised by the carrier concerned.

(d) A subscriber shall inform every consumer of any en

route changes of equipment, the number of scheduled en route

stops, the identity of the air carrier actually operating the flight,

and of any changes of airport required in any itinerary provided, to

the extent that that information is present in the computerized

reservation system. The subscriber shall inform the consumer of the

name and address of the system vendor, the purposes of the

processing, the duration of the retention of individual data and the

means available to the consumer to exercise his access rights.

(e) A consumer shall be entitled at any time to have a

print-out of the computerized reservation system display or to be

given access to a parallel computerized reservation system display

reflecting the image that is being displayed to the subscriber.

(f) A person shall be entitled to have effective access, free

of charge, to his own data regardless of whether the data is stored

by the computerized reservation system or by the subscriber.

(2) A subscriber shall use the distribution facilities of a

computerized reservation system in accordance with the Second

Schedule.

(1) Any fee charged to a participating carrier by a system

vendor shall be non-discriminatory, reasonably structured and

reasonably related to the cost of the service provided and used, and

shall, in particular, be the same for the same level of service.

(2) The billing for the services of a computerized reservation

system shall be sufficiently detailed to allow the participating

carriers to see exactly which services have been used and the fees

therefor; as a minimum, booking fee bills shall include the

following information for each segment

(i)

type of computerized reservation

system

booking;

(ii) passenger name;

(iii) country;

(iv) IATA/ARC agency identification code;

(v) city-code;

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(vi)

city pair of segment;

(vii)

booking date (transaction date);

(viii)

flight date;

(ix)

flight number;

(x)

status code (booking status);

(xi)

service type (class of service);

(xii)

passenger name record (PNR) locator; and

(xiii)

booking/cancellation indicator.

(3) The billing information shall be offered on magnetic or

other media normally used in the services provided. The fee to be

charged for the billing information provided in the form chosen by

the carrier shall not exceed the cost of the medium itself together

with its transportation costs. A participating air carrier shall be

offered the facility of being informed when any booking or

transaction is made for which a booking fee may be charged. Where

a carrier elects to be so informed, it shall be offered the option of

disallowing any such booking or transaction, unless the latter has

already been accepted. In the event of such a disallowance, the air

carrier shall not be charged for that booking or transaction.

(4) Any fee for equipment rental or other service charged to a

subscriber by a system vendor shall be non-discriminatory,

reasonably structured and reasonably related to the cost of the

service provided and used, and shall, in particular, be the same for

the same level of service. Productivity benefits awarded to

subscribers by system vendors in the form of discount on rental

charges or commission payments shall be deemed to be distribution

costs of the system vendors and shall be based on ticketed

segments. Wi thout prejudice to paragraph 5 of the Second

Schedule, when the system vendor does not know whether a ticket

has been issued or not, then that system vendor shall be entitled to

rely upon notification of the ticket number from the subscriber. The

billing for the services of a computerized reservation system shall

be sufficiently detailed to allow subscribers to see exactly which

services have been used and what fees have been charged therefor.

(5) A system vendor shall, on request, provide interested

parties, including consumers, with details of current procedures,

fees and system facilities, including interfaces, editing and display

criteria used. The processing of individual data shall be free of

charge for consumers to whom that information refers. This

provision shall not, however, require a system vendor to disclose

proprietary information such as software.

(6) Any changes to fee levels, conditions or facilities offered

and the basis therefor shall be communicated to all participating

carriers and subscribers on a non-discriminatory basis.

(1) The provisions of article 7, article 11(5) and the

Schedules shall not apply to a computerized reservation system

used by an air carrier or a group of air carriers

(a) in its own office or offices and sales counters clearly

identified as such; or

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(b) to provide information and, or distribution facilities

accessible through a public telecommunications

network, clearly and continuously identifying the

information provider or providers as such.

(2) Where booking is performed directly by an air carrier, the

provisions of article 12(1)(d) and (f) shall apply.

(1) The system vendor shall ensure that its computerized

reservation system complies with the technical requirements listed

in articles 6 and 8, and that this compliance is monitored by an

independent auditor on a calendar year basis. For that purpose, the

auditor shall be granted access at all times to any programmes,

procedures, operations and safeguards used on the computers or

computer systems through which the system vendor provides its

distribution facilities. Each system vendor shall submit its auditor’s

report on his inspection and findings to the Director within four

months of the end of the calendar year under review.

(2) The system vendor shall inform participating carriers and

the Director of the identity of the auditor at least three months

before his appointment and at least three months before each

annual reappointment. If, within one month of notification, any of

the participating carriers objects to the capability of the auditor to

carry out the tasks as required under this article, the Director shall,

within a further two months, and after consultation with the auditor,

the system vendor and any other party claiming a legitimate

interest, decide whether or not the auditor is to be replaced.

(1) Subject to the provisions of subarticles (2) to (5), the

provisions of this Act apply where a system vendor decides to

include rail services in the principal display of its computerized

reservation system.

(2) Where a system vendor decides to include rail products in

the principal display of its computerized reservation system, it may

choose to include only certain well-defined categories of rail

services, while respecting the principles stated in article 3(2).

(3) A rail transport operator shall be deemed to be a

participating or parent carrier, as appropriate, for the purposes of

this Act, insofar as it has an agreement with a system vendor for the

distribution of its products through the principal display of a

computerized reservation system or where its own reservation

system is a computerized reservation system as defined in article 2.

Subject to subarticle (4), those products shall be treated in the same

manner as air transport products and shall be incorporated in the

principal display in accordance with the criteria set out in the First

Schedule.

(4) (a) When applying the rules laid down in paragraphs 1 and

2 of the First Schedule to rail services, the system vendor shall

adjust the ranking principles for the principal display in order to

take due account of the needs of consumers to be adequately

informed of rail services that represent a competitive alternative to

the air services. In particular, system vendors may rank rail

services with a limited number of short stops with non-stop direct

air services.

CODE OF CONDUCT FOR

COMPUTERISED RESERVATION SYSTEMS

(b) System vendors shall define clear criteria for the

application of the provisions of this article to rail services. Such

criteria shall cover elapsed journey time and reflect the need to

avoid excessive screen padding. Those criteria shall be submitted

to the Director at least two months before their application.

(5) For the purposes of this article, all references to "flights" in

this Act shall be deemed to include references to "rail services" and

references to "air transport products" shall be deemed to include

references to "rail products".

The beneficiaries of rights arising under the provisions

articles 3(4), 6, 8 and 15 may not renounce to those rights by

contractual or any other means.

(1) The Director shall, acting either on his own initiative

or on receipt of a complaint, initiate proceedings before the Board

to terminate any infringement of the provisions of this Act.

(2) Complaints may be submitted by natural or legal persons

who claim a legitimate interest.

(1) There shall be established a Computerised Reservation

Systems Board, which shall consist of an advocate with not less

than twelve years experience, as chairman, sitting with two

technical assessors.

(2) The chairman and the technical assessors of the Board shall

be appointed by the Prime Minister from year to year

Provided that the Prime Minister may renew any

appointment from year to year and he may direct, on making any

new appointment, that the outgoing chairman or assessor shall

continue to sit on the Board in respect of any matter whereof he has

already taken cognizance before the termination of his appointment

until such matter is disposed of.

(3) The Prime Minister may also make any necessary

appointments for the purpose of surrogating the chairman or any

assessor of the Board in the event of his being, for any reason,

unable to carry out his functions with respect to any particular case

or cases.

(4) The chairman or any assessor of the Board shall not be

competent to take cognizance of or deal with any matter in which

he has a direct or an indirect interest.

(5) The technical assessors of the Board shall, before entering

upon their office, take before the Attorney General an oath to the

effect that they shall examine and decide any matter referred to

them under the provisions of this Act with equity and impartiality.

(6) The chairman of the Board shall have, for the purpose of

collecting the evidence and establishing the facts relating to any

matter before the Board, all such powers as are by the Code of

Organization and Civil Procedure vested in the Civil Court, First

Hall, for the like purpose in relation to any matter before it.

(7) Subject to any regulations made under article 21, the Board

shall regulate its own procedure.

CODE OF CONDUCT FOR

COMPUTERISED RESERVATION SYSTEMS

(8) The Prime Minister shall appoint a public officer to act as

secretary to the Board.

(1) Any decision of the Board shall be final and binding.

(2) Notwithstanding the provisions of subarticle (1), the Board

may, on a new fact being brought to its notice, review a decision

given by it

Provided that -

(a) the application for review is lodged in writing with the

Board within twenty days from the date on which the

decision is communicated to the undertaking or

association of undertakings; and

(b) a review of the decision shall in no case involve the

Board in any liability for any damages which may

have been sustained in consequence of the first

decision.

The Minister may, from time to time, make and, when

made, alter or revoke regulations generally for giving effect to any

of the provisions of this Act and particularly for making provision

regarding the procedure before the Board, the liability of any of the

parties in respect of the expenses incurred in connection therewith

and to prescribe anything that is to be prescribed under this Act.

(1) In carrying out the duties assigned to it by this Act, the

Board may obtain all necessary information from undertakings and

from any association of undertakings.

(2) The Board may fix a time limit of not less than one month

for the communication of the information requested.

(3) In its request the Board shall state the legal basis and

purpose of the request and also the penalties, which may be

imposed in accordance with article 23(1), for the supply of

incorrect information.

(4) The owners of the undertakings or their representatives

and, in the case of a legal person or of companies, firms or

associations not having legal personality, the person authorised to

represent them by law or by their rules, shall be bound to supply the

information requested.

(5) Undertakings and associations of undertakings shall submit

to investigations ordered by a decision of the Board. The decision

shall specify the subject matter and the purpose of the

investigation, appoint the date on which it is to begin and indicate

the penalties which may be imposed in accordance with article

23(1).

(1) The Board may impose disciplinary penalties, on

undertakings or associations of undertakings, of not less than nine

hundred and thirty-one euro and seventy-five cents (931.75) but

not exceeding forty-six thousand and five hundred and eighty-

seven euro and forty-seven cents (46,587.47) where the

undertakings or associations of undertakings, whether intentionally

or negligently -

(a) supply incorrect information in response to a request

CODE OF CONDUCT FOR

COMPUTERISED RESERVATION SYSTEMS

made pursuant to article 22, or do not supply

information within the time limit fixed; or

(b) produce books or other business records in incomplete

form during investigations, or refuse to submit to an

investigation pursuant to article 22(5).

(2) The Board may impose disciplinary penalties on system

vendors, parent carriers, participating carriers and, or subscribers

for infringements of the provisions of this Act up to a maximum of

ten per cent of the annual turnover for the relevant activity of the

undertaking concerned. In fixing the amount of the penalty, regard

shall be had both to the seriousness and to the duration of the

infringement.

(3) Decisions imposing disciplinary penalties, pursuant to the

provisions of subarticles (1) and (2), shall not be of a penal nature,

and any such penalties shall be recoverable as a civil debt by the

Director by action before the competent court of civil jurisdiction.

(4) Carriers, whether they are parent or participating carriers,

subscribers and system vendors shall be subject to the jurisdiction

and the procedures of, and the administrative penalties imposed by,

the Board.