The Official Journal of the European Union has published in the edition of 6 march of Explanatory note with regard to the definition of a ‘parent carrier’ in Regulation (EC) No 80/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council on a Code of Conduct for computerised reservation systems and repealing Council Regulation (EEC) No 2299/89.

The note aims to clarify to market participants the meaning of the new definition and to indicate how the Commission services would determine the status of an air carrier or rail-transport operator with respect to this definition.

Definitions established in the explanatory note.

‘Parent carrier’ means any air carrier or rail-transport operator which directly or indirectly, alone or jointly with others, controls or participates in the capital with rights or representation on the board of directors, supervisory board or any other governing body of a system vendor, as well as any air carrier or rail-transport operator which it controls.

‘Control’ means a relationship constituted by rights, contracts or any other means which, either separately or in combination and having regard to the considerations of fact or law involved, confer the possibility of exercising decisive influence on an undertaking, in particular by:

• Ownership or the right to use all or part of the assets of an undertaking,
• Rights or contracts which confer a decisive influence on the composition, voting or decisions of the organs of an undertaking,

‘Participation in the capital with rights or representation on the board of directors, supervisory board or any other governing body of a system vendor’ means an investment to which are attached rights or representation on the board of directors, supervisory board or any other governing body of a system vendor, and conferring the possibility of exercising, alone or jointly with others, decisive influence on the running of the business of the system vendor.