Live Nation faces antitrust lawsuit from Justice Department over ticket dominance

The Justice Department is expected to file a lawsuit on Thursday against Live Nation Entertainment – including concert giant Ticketmaster – for antitrust violations, Bloomberg reported late Wednesday.

According to the website, the lawsuit will be filed in the Southern District of New York.

Last month, The Wall Street Journal reported that the investigation is ongoing over outrageously high fees, poor customer service and anti-competitive practices such as retaliation against stadiums and arenas that choose to use other ticketing companies.

“Based on the issues we know of, we do not believe that a breakup of Live Nation and Ticketmaster would be a legally permissible remedy,” Live Nation Chief Financial Officer and President Joe Berchtold said earlier this month. He added that he believed the Justice Department’s investigation was focused more on specific business practices than Live Nation’s merger with Ticketmaster.

The merger of the two companies took place in 2010 and was then approved by the Department of Justice. Neither side immediately responded to TheWrap’s request for comment.

The Department of Justice has reportedly been keeping an eye on the Beverly Hills-based conglomerate, which bills itself as the “world’s leading live entertainment company,” for years.

In 2018, he was reportedly investigating allegations that the combined company used its dominance in the touring industry to pressure venues to sell their tickets on Ticketmaster or risk losing popular bands.

Politicians on both sides of the aisle, including Amy Klobuchar, have slammed the company for mishandling sales during Taylor Swift’s “Eras” tour.

In November 2022, Klobuchar called for a Senate investigation into Ticketmaster, telling CBS Minnesota affiliate WCCO, “I’ve been calling for change for years, and maybe Taylor Swift fans… will finally stop accepting it.”

According to Reuters, Live Nation shares fell 7% after the bell on Wednesday.