News broke earlier this year of a massive antitrust lawsuit from the Justice Department against Ticketmaster and, by extension, its parent company Live Nation. On Thursday (May 23), the governmental organization officially filed its suit against the entertainment conglomerates, accusing them of an illegal monopoly over live events in the U.S. that aggressively stifles competition and inflates fees and ticket prices. Moreover, authorities comprising 30 state and district attorneys general filed the lawsuit in Manhattan federal court. It aims to dismantle the alleged monopoly for the benefit of artists and promoters suffering at its hands.
"We allege that Live Nation relies on unlawful, anticompetitive conduct to exercise its monopolistic control over the live events industry in the United States at the cost of fans, artists, smaller promoters, and venue operators,” a statement from Attorney General Merrick Garland read. “The result is that fans pay more in fees, artists have fewer opportunities to play concerts, smaller promoters get squeezed out, and venues have fewer real choices for ticketing services. It is time to break up Live Nation-Ticketmaster." This is not the only legal move that Live Nation is reckoning with right now, considering other debacles like the Astroworld tragedy.
The Justice Department Sues Live Nation & Ticketmaster
Nevertheless, the Justice Department pointed to long-term venue contracts, blocking venues from using other sellers, and threatening venues to use their service as ways in which Ticketmaster unrightfully exerted or held their power over live U.S. events. Live Nation has continually denied any violations of antitrust laws. They cited "the large gap that exists between the quality of the Ticketmaster system and the next best primary ticketing system" as the explanation for its dominance in the market back when federal investigations bubbled up in 2022. However, the service's competition claimed that they make market disruption impossible through, for example, threatening to withhold performers if venues don't partner with Ticketmaster.
"Today’s action is a step forward in making this era of live music more accessible for the fans, the artists, and the industry that supports them," Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco. This joins other antitrust initiatives amid the Biden administration, including lawsuits and legal action against Apple, Google, Amazon, and more. Ticketmaster accounts for 70% of major venue ticket sales in the U.S., according to a 2022 federal lawsuit data. In 2019, the Justice Department found Live Nation liable for violating an agreement to not retaliate against venues using other ticketing services, which was established when it merged with Ticketmaster in 2010.
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