Following a high-profile antitrust case, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Monday that it has reached a tentative settlement with Ticketmaster and its parent company, Live Nation.
After a 2010 merger, the combined Live Nation and Ticketmaster control the majority of ticket sales and venue bookings in the U.S., leaving talent with little choice but to work with these companies. For years, customers have been fed up with dynamic pricing issues and ticket-buying processes that can drive up ticket prices by thousands of dollars (often without consulting artists). Sales of Taylor Swift’s Ellas tour have deteriorated so widely that it has triggered government scrutiny.
According to the Associated Press, the settlement will force Live Nation to pay up to $280 million in fines and sell at least 13 venues to create more opportunities for competitors. However, the attorneys general of several states involved in the lawsuit are not satisfied with the settlement.
“The recently announced settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice fails to address the monopoly issues at the heart of this case and will benefit Live Nation at the expense of consumers,” New York Attorney General Letitia James said in a statement. “We cannot agree to that.”
Twenty-six of the 30 state attorneys general who joined the Justice Department in suing the company have chosen to join Attorney General James in continuing the case against Live Nation.
Washington State Attorney General Nick Brown also said the settlement “does not adequately resolve” the concert-goer issue.
“For too long, Live Nation has raked in billions of dollars through a monopoly that has made it difficult for consumers to see the artists they love, suppressed artists, and raised ticket prices for countless music fans,” he said.
The trial lasted less than a week before the Justice Department and Live Nation agreed to the settlement. However, some interesting testimony came to light during the trial.
John Abbamondi, former CEO of the NBA’s Brooklyn Nets and Barclays Center (where the Nets play), spoke about his decision to work with another ticketing company rather than Ticketmaster in 2021.
A later phone call between Abbamondi and Live Nation CEO Michael Rapinoe was played in court, and The New York Times said the recorded conversation was hostile and “full of abuse.”
Mr. Abbamondi told jurors last week that Mr. Rapinoe made comments on a conference call that he interpreted as a “veiled threat, perhaps an unveiled threat” that Live Nation would reduce its concerts at Barclays Center as a result of the ticket changes.
Live Nation reported last month that the company sold more than 646 million tickets last year and hosted more than 54,000 events overseas. Live Nation owns 150 venues in the United States and invested $1 billion last year to build 18 more live music venues.
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