Fans File $5 Billion Class Action Lawsuit Against Live Nation Following Department of Justice Antitrust Lawsuit

(HYPEBOT) — Live Nation and Ticketmaster were hit with a consumer class action lawsuit on Thursday. The lawsuit follows a U.S. Department of Justice antitrust case filed earlier this week.

The first of what is likely to be a wave of related lawsuits has been filed in federal court in Manhattan, seeking $5 billion in damages to potentially millions of ticket buyers.

If the number of consumer cases increases quickly, it would increase legal pressure on the concert and ticketing giant as it battles the Justice Department for the right to remain a combined company.

“Over the past three decades, Live Nation and Ticketmaster have together built empires in several key markets within the concert and live event economy,” the new lawsuit alleges. “Live Nation has grown into a concert and event promotion giant, and Ticketmaster has taken over the primary and secondary concert and event ticketing markets in the United States.”

“As a result of this merger,” the filing continues, “the new entity now dominates three major economic markets in the United States: (1) major concert hall concert promotion, (2) primary ticketing services for major concert halls1, and ( 3 ) secondary ticket sales services for main concert venues.”

Bruce Houghton is the founder and editor of Hypebot, senior advisor at Bandsintown, president of Skyline Artists Agency, and professor at Berklee College Of Music.