Live Nation Antitrust Lawsuit Filed by Department of Justice

The US Department of Justice, together with a group of 29 states, filed a long-awaited antitrust lawsuit against Live Nation on Thursday, accusing the concert giant of dominating the market and demanding its division.

“It’s time to break it up,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said in Thursday’s announcement.

The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Manhattan, alleged that Live Nation abused its enormous market power to suppress competition, including through the use of exclusive ticketing agreements that prevented venues from using Ticketmaster for all events.

To address the alleged violations, the Justice Department says Live Nation must divest its Ticketmaster ownership, effectively undoing a controversial 2010 merger that was approved by federal regulators despite concerns that it would give the company too much power over live music.

Live Nation has long faced criticism over its market share, but scrutiny of the company has increased dramatically after the disastrous launch of Taylor Swift Eras Tour 2023 tickets in November 2022, which caused widespread service delays and website crashes.

The Justice Department had already launched an investigation into the company’s practices in early 2022, before the Swift incident. But the failed pre-sale sparked congressional hearings, civil antitrust lawsuits and calls for the company to be dissolved. Lawmakers such as Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), chairwoman of the Senate antitrust subcommittee, warned that Live Nation’s strength “insulates it from the competitive pressures that typically push companies to innovate and improve their services.”

Live Nation has denied such accusations. In a blog post last month, the company’s top antitrust lawyer argued that the “monopoly” claims were intended to “incite fans against Live Nation and Ticketmaster.” As recently as Tuesday, CEO Joe Berchtold said the company’s practices were “fully justified” and that a settlement with the Justice Department was still possible.

When Live Nation and Ticketmaster merged in 2010, the Justice Department approved the deal but imposed a so-called consent decree intended to prevent the company from abusing its position. These restrictions were set to expire in 2020, but were extended for five years after the Department of Justice accused Live Nation of repeatedly violating the executive order.