The US Department of Justice files an antitrust lawsuit against Live Nation and Ticketmaster

The U.S. Department of Justice, along with 29 states and the District of Columbia, filed an antitrust lawsuit against Live Nations and Ticketmaster. They are seeking to break up both entities and claim (correctly) that Live Nation has not only illegally inflated ticket prices, but has also engaged in “abusive actions designed to crush competition” in ticket sales. A statement released by U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland says in part:

“We allege that Live Nation relies on unlawful, anti-competitive conduct to exercise its monopoly control over the live events industry in the United States at the expense of fans, artists, smaller promoters and venue operators. As a result, fans pay more in fees, artists have fewer opportunities to play shows, smaller promoters are squeezed out, and venues have fewer real choices in ticketing services. It is time to part ways with Live Nation-Ticketmaster.”

Ticketmaster currently holds between 70% and 80% of the primary ticketing market in the United States alone. Dan Wall, vice president of corporate and regulatory affairs at Live Nation, released a statement on the Live Nation website that reads in part:

“There was intense political pressure on the Department of Justice to file the lawsuit, and rivals and ticket brokers waged a long-term lobbying campaign hoping to protect the government for themselves. (…) It ignores everything that is actually responsible for higher ticket prices, from rising production costs to the popularity of artists, to the 24/7 online ticket scalping that reveals the public’s willingness to pay much more than the original cost of tickets. He blames Live Nation and Ticketmaster for high service fees, but ignores the fact that Ticketmaster only keeps a modest portion of those fees. In fact, primary ticket sales are one of the cheapest digital distributions in the economy.”

The Department of Justice initially opened an antitrust investigation into Live Nation in 2022. The U.S. House of Representatives also passed legislation called the TICKET Act, which would provide greater transparency in the ticketing space and require all venues selling tickets to show the actual price of the ticket with all fees listed in detailed list. In order for the bill to enter into force, it must be passed by the Senate and signed by the president. We will keep you informed.