Live Nation 'inflated concert prices', US justice demands split

US Justice impeaches Live Nation, the global concert and live events giant. The U.S. Department of Justice, a group of 30 states and Washington, DC have fileda lawsuit to dissolve the company, alleging that the multinational corporation and its Ticketmaster division, an internet platform that sells tickets, illegally inflated concert prices and harmed artists.

"It's time to disband Live Nation," said US Attorney General Merrick Garland. Concert fans and politicians have been calling for years for a re-examination of Live Nation's purchase of Ticketmaster, which was finalised in 2010, especially after Taylor Swift fans stood in queues for hours to buy tickets in 2022. More serious is the accusation of charging prices that customers consider too high and fees for poor service. The lawsuit underscores the aggressive approach the US antitrust authorities have taken in trying to create more competition in a wide range of industries, from big tech to healthcare to groceries.

Live Nation "stifles competition," Garland said. "The company relies onunlawful and anti-competitive conduct to exert its monopolistic control over the US live events industry at the expense of fans, artists, small promoters and venue operators." Under the yoke of Live Nation, musicians have fewer opportunities to perform and smaller promoters are excluded. In the wake of the judicial shingle,Live Nation's shares lost 7% in mid-session on Wall Street. In the lawsuit, the Justice Department and the States asked the court to 'order the divestiture, at a minimum, of Ticketmaster, along with any further relief necessary for anticompetitive damages'.

Live Nation called the lawsuit a possible "public relations victory for the Justice Department in the short term," but said it would prevail in court. The lawsuit "will not resolve the issues of concern to fans relating to ticket prices, service fees and access to popular shows". The lawsuit states that Live Nation directly manages more than 400 music artists and controls about 60% of concert promotions in major cities. In addition, the company owns more than 265 concert venues in North America and, through Ticketmaster, controls about 80% of the ticketing for major events.

In the statement filed in the Southern District of New York, the Justice Department argued that the "vast reach" of Live Nation and Ticketmaster allowed them to "insert themselves in the middle and margins of virtually every aspect of the live music ecosystem". Democratic Senator Amy Klobuchar welcomed the lawsuit, but said Congress still needs to take further action "to put fans first" by increasing ticket sales and preventing bots from buying blocks of tickets. The attorneys general of New York, California, Florida and Texas joined the Justice Department's lawsuit.