Southwest's Grammy commercial, and the baggage fee fight behind it

ajc.com

Credit: Kelly Yamanouchi

Credit: Kelly Yamanouchi

Grammy watchers in Atlanta saw a catchy Southwest Airlines commercial on Monday night that played off an excerpt of DJ Khaled's 2010 song "All I Do Is Win."

The baggage fee issue behind it is a big part of airline competition in Atlanta.

While Dallas-based Southwest gained a reputation years ago for driving down fares, the carrier is now emphasizing Atlanta passengers' savings on checked bag fees and other fees.

The move comes as Delta and other big carriers continue charging checked bag fees, and as ultra low-cost carrier expand in Atlanta by underpricing competitors, while charging more fees -- for checked bags as well as carry-on bags and sodas, for example.

In the commercial, Southwest says travelers flying out of Atlanta saved $37 million on checked bag fees and reservation fees. That's based on the period from July 2014 through June 2015, in a comparison to other carriers' average fees based on U.S. Department of Transportation data.