Monday, July 7, 2014

Legalize Catalonian acts among consenting adults

European travellers of a certain age may remember arriving at a city train depot and looking for the local loitering, who could ask, 'Do you need a room?' That after making sure no policeman was watching two parties agreeing to a mutual beneficial swap. Today, there's an app for that;
The Catalan government has slapped the US-based website Airbnb with a €30,000 fine for illegally commercializing short-stay apartment rentals that are not listed on the Catalan Tourism Register.
...Sources in the Catalan government noted that this practice is not allowed under regional legislation, which seeks to protect the hotel industry from what is viewed as unfair competition. 
Iow, a well-focused, deep pocketed industry uses the police to hinder competition;
The last state legislative reform established that short-term tourist rentals should be regulated by regional governments, and Catalonia was the first to make a move after it counted an estimated one million illegal beds in its territory. 
One million illegal beds does sorta of say, 'Find a need and fill it, when the established firms don't.'

La historia es de bunks.

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