The Department of Justice sues Live Nation for antitrust violations, alleging that the company engaged in 'anticompetitive practices that unfairly inflate ticket prices'
On May 23, 2024, the US Department of Justice, together with 30 states and state attorneys general, filed an antitrust lawsuit against
Office of Public Affairs | Justice Department Sues Live Nation-Ticketmaster for Monopolizing Markets Across the Live Concert Industry | United States Department of Justice
https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-sues-live-nation-ticketmaster-monopolizing-markets-across-live-concert
The US government is trying to break up Live Nation-Ticketmaster - The Verge
https://www.theverge.com/2024/5/23/24163083/live-nation-ticketmaster-doj-monopoly-lawsuit-break-up
Live Nation is a live entertainment company headquartered in Beverly Hills, California, USA, that owns or manages over 265 concert venues in North America. In 2010, it acquired the ticket sales company Ticketmaster, giving it a huge dominance in the live entertainment industry.
On May 23, 2024, the US Department of Justice filed an antitrust lawsuit against Live Nation and its subsidiary Ticketmaster. The complaint, filed in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, alleges that Live Nation and Ticketmaster have illegally exercised market power, resulting in American music fans being deprived of innovation in ticket sales and being forced to use outdated technology while paying higher ticket prices than fans in other countries. Live Nation also exercises its market power in a manner that harms performers, live venues, and independent live promoters.
The Department of Justice alleges that Live Nation and Ticketmaster engaged in the following 'practices to eliminate competition':
-Working with venue management company
- In order to gain a foothold in the American concert promotion market, they threatened financial retaliation against potential competitors.
- It strengthened their grip on the live entertainment industry, allowing them to retaliate against live venues using other promoters and ticket distributors.
- Locking live music venues into long-term exclusivity contracts, preventing them from switching to rival ticket sellers or more cost-effective ticketing technologies.
- Live venues are no longer allowed to use multiple ticket sellers.
- Increased control over major live music venues through acquisitions and partnerships, and restricted their use by artists who did not agree to promotional contracts.
- Strategically acquired promoters who were perceived as a threat within the company.
The Department of Justice alleges that these practices allowed Live Nation and Ticketmaster to increase their market power while excluding competition, thereby manipulating the price and quality of tickets to concerts at their discretion and adversely affecting compensation to artists.
'We allege that Live Nation has relied on illegal anticompetitive conduct to exert monopoly control over America's live events industry at the expense of fans, artists, small promoters, and venue operators,' Attorney General Garland said. 'As a result, fans pay more, artists get fewer opportunities to perform, small promoters are exploited, and venues have fewer effective ticketing options. It's time to break up Live Nation and Ticketmaster.'
At the time of writing, the Department of Justice has not stated what the 'breakup of Live Nation and Ticketmaster' will entail. Regarding this, foreign media The Verge states that 'if the government rules in its favor, the merger between Live Nation and Ticketmaster may ultimately be effectively dissolved.'
In response to the Department of Justice lawsuit, Live Nation posted a rebuttal on its official website.
Update: Breaking Down The DOJ Lawsuit - Live Nation Entertainment
https://www.livenationentertainment.com/2024/05/update-breaking-down-the-doj-lawsuit/
'Live Nation argues that the live events industry is more competitive than it has ever been, that the company has not unfairly exercised market power, and that the factors that are actually driving up ticket prices are rising production costs, the popularity of artists, and online scalpers, all of which the Justice Department has ignored,' the lawsuit said.
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