Disneyland Paris faces EU probe

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European Union regulators are investigating prices charged by Disneyland Paris after complaints from foreign consumers who said they were charged far more than their French counterparts.

PARIS (REUTERS) - 14.2 million people passed through these gates last year, making Disneyland Paris Europe's most visited tourist attraction. But could some of them be paying far more compared to others - especially if they're British or German?

If you're French, you might, reportedly, pay around 1,300 euros (S$1,960) for a premium package. If you're from the United Kingdom (UK), the same package might cost you nearly 1,900 euros - and if you're from Germany, you could add another five to six hundred euros on top of that.

"It doesn't need to matter if you come from France, or wherever, that you got a difference of price. Yeah, it is not right," said Dutch tourist and Disneyland Paris visitor Michael De Boer.

"Once you're in there, they've got a captive market as well and so you wanna make sure that you get the best you can before you come," said British tourist Andrew Blackwell.

Allegedly, it's all down to a practice called ''geoblocking''. Consumers are restricted from shopping around to get the best price for products and services, based on their own location.

European Union regulators are now looking into Disneyland Paris after complaints from customers and consumer groups.

''The European Commission's very keen to promote the single market in goods and services, and certainly in terms of services it's far from complete," said Mr Mike Ingram, BCG Partners' market strategist.

It's not the first probe of its kind. Five car rental companies agreed to change their pricing last year after similar complaints.

And last week, the EU accused Sky UK and six Hollywood studios of blocking pay-TV services in the UK and Ireland to consumers elsewhere.

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