Agoda Keeps Drip Pricing in Korea Despite Government Sanctions

Years of warnings, little change

The Korea Consumer Agency flagged the problem in 2023. In February last year, the government put into force an amendment to the e-commerce act that regulates this type of dark pattern. Even so, the practice has persisted for years, raising concerns about consumer harm and about unfair competition against domestic companies that operate by the rules.

Agoda did fix the issue for flights. The Fair Trade Commission's Seoul regional office investigated its flight listings in February, confirmed violations, and closed the case with a warning on 22 October because the company corrected the problem voluntarily during the probe.

Accommodation is different. In July, the media and communications regulator fined Agoda 2.424 billion won and issued a corrective order. It cited, among other things, the failure to clearly disclose that choosing "pay later" can add a surcharge of up to 5%.

Broader investigation under way

Since May, the Fair Trade Commission has separately been investigating dark patterns at four online travel companies: Agoda, NOL Universe, Yanolja's rival Yeogi Eottae and Booking.com.

Experts say pressure on global platforms should rise. Lee Woo-jin, dean of the Graduate School of Global Entrepreneurship and Venture at Kookmin University, said that if a company fails to improve despite sanctions, it should explain exactly why, and the government should send a clearer message and demand effective measures.