Airbnb is a Platform Not an Estate Agent, Says Europe's Top Court

Airbnb will be breathing a sigh of relief today: Europe's top court has judged it to be an online platform which merely connects people looking for short term accommodation, rather than a full-blown estate agent. From a report: The ruling may make it harder for the 'home sharing' platform to be forced to comply with local property regulations -- at least under current regional rules governing ecommerce platforms. The judgement by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) today follows a complaint made by a French tourism association, AHTOP, which had argued Airbnb should hold a professional estate agent licence. And, that by not having one, the platform giant was in breach of a piece of French legislation known as the 'Hoguet Law.' However the court disagreed -- siding with Airbnb's argument that its business must be classified as an 'information society service' under EU Directive 2000/31 on electronic commerce.

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