The US Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit upheld a lower-court dismissal of allegations that Wynn Resorts, Caesars Entertainment, and Treasure Island colluded to manipulate hotel rates using shared pricing software, so defeating a consumer class action lawsuit.

A three-judge panel in San Francisco unanimously affirmed the decision of a US District Court in Las Vegas, which concluded that the plaintiffs had not demonstrated that the resorts had consented to abide by pricing suggestions produced by a shared revenue-management platform run by Cendyn.

“Rather than eliminating competition, pricing one’s hotel rooms in a manner calculated to maximize profits is how one competes,” wrote Circuit Judge Carlos Bea, joined by Circuit Judge Ana de Alba and US District Court Judge Jeffrey Brown.

The initial class-action lawsuit, which was filed in January 2023, included MGM Resorts as a defendant. It was not included in the appeal, though. The court filings did not provide an explanation for its omission.

The plaintiffs claimed that Cendyn's algorithm, which generated pricing suggestions that resulted in exorbitant lodging charges, was provided sensitive data by the resorts.

However, the court determined that the hotels were still allowed to determine their own rates.

The court rejected the plaintiffs' argument that even non-binding pricing guidance can limit competition.

Any misconduct has been refuted by the gaming firms.

The case is a part of an increasing number of lawsuits aimed against the hospitality industry's usage of revenue-optimization tools. Last October, a comparable price-fixing claim against casino-hotels in Atlantic City was dismissed.

Chief US District Judge Miranda Du decided that non-binding pricing recommendations do not constitute a constraint on trade when she dismissed the Las Vegas complaint in May.