US Department of Justice files wide-ranging antitrust lawsuit against Ticketmaster, Live Nation

The Justice Department filed a wide-ranging antitrust lawsuit Thursday against Ticketmaster and parent company Live Nation Entertainment, accusing them of having an illegal monopoly on live events in America – stifling competition and inflating prices for fans.

The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Manhattan, was brought before 30 state and district attorneys general and seeks to break up a monopoly that they say crowds out smaller promoters and harms artists.

“We allege that Live Nation relies on unlawful, anticompetitive conduct to exercise its monopoly control over the U.S. live events industry at the expense of fans, artists, smaller promoters and venue operators,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement. “As a result, fans pay more in fees, artists have fewer opportunities to play shows, smaller promoters are squeezed out and venues have less real choice in ticketing services. It is time to part ways with Live Nation-Ticketmaster.”

The Department of Justice accuses Live Nation of a number of practices that allow it to maintain its grip on the live music scene, including using long-term contracts to prevent venues from selecting competing ticket sellers, blocking venues from using multiple ticket sellers and threatening venues that they could lose money and fans if they don’t choose Ticketmaster. The Justice Department says Live Nation also threatened retaliation against one company if it did not stop its subsidiary from bidding for artist promotion contracts.

Live Nation has denied engaging in practices that violate antitrust laws. When it was reported that the company was under federal investigation in 2022, the concert promoter said in a statement that Ticketmaster had such a large market share because of the “large gap that exists between the quality of the Ticketmaster system and the quality of the next best major ticketing system.” “

However, competing ticket sellers have long complained that Live Nation makes it harder for them to disrupt the market through practices such as halting ticket sales if those venues do not agree to use Ticketmaster’s services.

The lawsuit is the latest example of the Biden administration’s aggressive approach to antitrust enforcement targeting companies accused of engaging in illegal monopolies that exclude competitors and raise prices. In March, the Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against Apple, maintaining that the tech giant has monopoly power in the smartphone market. The Democratic administration has also attacked Google, Amazon and other tech giants.

“Today’s action is a step forward in making the live music era more accessible to fans, artists and the industry that supports them,” Assistant Attorney General Lisa Monaco said in a statement.

Ticketmaster, which merged with Live Nation in 2010, is the world’s largest ticket reseller, handling 500 million tickets annually in more than 30 countries. About 70 percent of major U.S. concert hall tickets are sold through Ticketmaster, according to a federal lawsuit filed by consumers in 2022. The company owns or controls more than 265 concert halls in North America and dozens of premier amphitheaters, according to the Justice Department.

The ticket seller sparked outrage in November 2022 when its website crashed during the pre-sale of Taylor Swift’s stadium tour. The company said its site had been overwhelmed both by fans and attacks by bots posing as consumers looking to get their hands on tickets and sell them on secondary sites. The debacle prompted congressional hearings and bills in state legislatures aimed at better consumer protection.

The Justice Department allowed the merger of Live Nation and Ticketmaster, provided Live Nation agreed not to retaliate against concert venues for using third-party tickets for 10 years. In 2019, the department conducted an investigation and found that Live Nation had “repeatedly” breached that agreement and extended its ban on retaliating against concert venues through 2025.