DOJ: Ticketmaster and Live Nation Monopoly Raises Prices

(WASHINGTON) – The Justice Department filed a sweeping antitrust lawsuit against Ticketmaster and its parent company Live Nation Entertainment on Thursday, accusing them of running an illegal monopoly on live events in America – stifling competition and raising prices to The fans.

The lawsuit, filed in Manhattan federal court, is being brought by 30 state and district attorneys general and seeks to break up the monopoly they say is driving out small promoters and harming artists.

“We allege that Live Nation relies on illegal and anticompetitive conduct to exert its monopolistic control over the live events industry in the United States, at the expense of fans, artists, small promoters and venue operators,” said Attorney General Merrick Garland in a statement. “The result is that fans pay more fees, artists have fewer opportunities to play shows, smaller promoters are priced out, and venues have fewer real options for ticketing services.

The Justice Department accuses Live Nation of a series of practices that allow it to maintain a strong hold on the live music scene, including using long-term contracts to prevent venues from choosing rival tickets, preventing venues from using multiple ticket sellers and threatening venues that they could lose money and fans if they don’t choose Ticketmaster. The Justice Department says Live Nation also threatened to retaliate against a company if it didn’t stop a subsidiary from competing for artist promotion contracts.

Live Nation has denied that it is involved in practices that violate antitrust laws. When it was reported that the company was under federal investigation in 2022, the concert promoter said in a statement that Ticketmaster enjoys a large share of the market due to “the large gap that exists between the quality of the Ticketmaster system and the next best primary ticketing system.” ticketing.”

But competing ticket sellers have long complained that Live Nation makes it difficult for them to disrupt the market with practices like withholding acts if those venues don’t agree to use Ticketmaster’s service.

The lawsuit is the latest example of the Biden administration’s aggressive antitrust enforcement approach, targeting companies accused of engaging in illegal monopolies that isolate competitors and raise prices. In March, the Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against Apple alleging that the technology giant has monopoly power in the smartphone market. The Democratic administration has also faced off against Google, Amazon and other tech giants.

“Today’s action is a step forward in making this era of live music more accessible for fans, artists and the industry that supports them,” Assistant Attorney General Lisa Monaco said in a statement.

Ticketmaster, which merged with Live Nation in 2010, is the world’s largest ticket seller, processing 500 million tickets a year in more than 30 countries. About 70% of tickets to major U.S. concert venues are sold through Ticketmaster, according to data from a 2022 federal consumer lawsuit. The company owns or controls more than 265 North American concert venues and dozens of the main amphitheatres, according to the Department of Justice.

The ticket seller sparked outrage in November 2022 when its website crashed during a pre-sale event for a Taylor Swift stadium tour. The company said its website was overwhelmed by both fans and bot attacks posing as consumers to buy tickets and sell them on secondary sites. The disaster prompted congressional hearings and bills in state legislatures designed to better protect consumers.

The Justice Department allowed the merger of Live Nation and Ticketmaster as long as Live Nation agreed not to retaliate against concert venues for using other ticket companies for 10 years. In 2019, the department investigated and found that Live Nation “repeatedly” violated that agreement and extended the ban on retaliation against concert venues until 2025.