Oregon and Washington companies join antitrust lawsuit against Ticketmaster, Live Nation

Ticketmaster tickets and gift cards are viewed at a box office in San Jose, California, May 11, 2009. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma, File)

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – The U.S. Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit along with 30 states, including Oregon and Washington, in an attempt to break up Ticketmaster and Live Nation’s “ticket monopoly.”

The lawsuit, filed Thursday morning, alleges that “the companies used their dominance in concert tickets to undermine competition for live event ticket sales, thereby raising ticket prices for individuals,” the state’s attorney general said in a news release Washington Bob Ferguson.

The lawsuit also alleged that Live Nation and Ticketmaster violated the Sherman Antitrust Act by increasing barriers to other companies and eliminating rivals, resulting in an “unlawful monopoly on the live entertainment industry.”

In Washington, several large concert venues, including RV Inn Style Resorts Amphitheater, Gorge Amphitheater and White River Amphitheater, are managed by Live Nation, and in Oregon they operate Hayden Home Amphitheater and Moda Center, as well as other smaller venues. They operate a total of over 250 facilities in the United States, including over 60 of the top 100.

“This is a big deal for Oregonians,” said Ellen Rosenblum of Oregon AG. “Live Nation’s anti-competitive conduct harms both fans and artists. We are joining this lawsuit because Live Nation suppresses innovation, limits consumer choices, inflates prices and charges excessive fees – and we want these practices to end.”

As part of the lawsuit, the Department of Justice calls on Live Nation to divest Ticketmaster and prohibit Live Nation from engaging in anticompetitive practices.

“Free enterprise is based on companies competing with each other,” said AG Ferguson. “Instead, industry leaders drove out competitors to increase their profits at the expense of fans. My office is working with this bipartisan coalition to end this monopoly.”