WASHINGTON (AP) The Department of Justiceand several states, including Oregon, filed a sweeping antitrust lawsuit Thursday against Ticketmaster and its parent company Live Nation Entertainment, accusing them of exercising an illegal monopoly on live events in America, stifling competition and driving up prizes for fans.
The lawsuit, filed in Manhattan federal court, was filed against 30 state and district attorneys general and aims to break the monopoly that they say crowds out small promoters, harms artists and drowns fans with fees endless.
It's time for fans and artists to stop paying the price of Live Nations' monopoly, Attorney General Merrick Garland said Thursday. It's time to restore competition and innovation to the entertainment industry. It's time to disband Live Nation, Ticketmaster. The American people are ready for it.
The Justice Department accused Live Nation of using a range of tactics, including threats and retaliation, that Garland said allowed the entertainment giant to stifle competition by maintaining control over virtually every aspect of the industry, from concert promotion to ticketing. The impact on consumers results in a laundry list of fees imposed on fans,” the attorney general said.
Live music shouldn't be available only to those who can afford to pay the Ticketmaster tax, said Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter of the Justice Department's antitrust division. We are here today to fight for competition so we can reopen the doors to the live music industry for all.
Live Nation has denied for years that it violated antitrust laws and said Thursday that the lawsuit would not resolve issues that fans care about over ticket prices, service fees and access to in-demand shows.
Calling Ticketmaster a monopoly might be a public relations victory for the DOJ in the short term, but it will lose in court because it ignores the fundamental economics of live entertainment, Live Nation added, saying that most ticketmaster fees service go to theaters and that external competition has steadily increased. eroded” Ticketmaster's market share. The company said it would defend itself against the baseless allegations and push for further reforms.
The Justice Department said Live Nation's anticompetitive practices include using long-term contracts to prevent venues from choosing competing ticket offices, prohibiting 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 a company if it did not prevent a subsidiary from competing for artist endorsement deals.
The lawsuit is the latest example of the Biden administration's aggressive antitrust enforcement approach targeting companies accused of engaging in illegal monopolies that eliminate competitors and drive up prices. In March, the Department of Justice filed a complaint against Apple alleging that the tech giant has monopoly power in the smartphone market. The Democratic administration has also taken on Google, Amazon and other tech giants.
Ticketmaster, which merged with Live Nation in 2010, is the world's largest ticket seller. During its annual report last month, the company said Ticketmaster had distributed more than 620 million tickets through its systems in 2023.
About 70% of tickets for major concert venues in the United States are sold through Ticketmaster, according to data from a 2022 federal consumer lawsuit. The company owns or controls more than 265 North American concert venues. North and dozens of prominent amphitheaters, according to the Ministry of Justice.
The ticket seller sparked outrage in November 2022 when her site crashed during a pre-sale event for a Taylor Swift stadium tour. The company said its site was overwhelmed by both fans and bot attacks, which posed as consumers to grab tickets and sell them on secondary sites. The debacle prompted hearings in Congress and bills in state legislatures aimed at better protecting consumers.
The Justice Department allowed Live Nation and Ticketmaster to merge on the condition that Live Nation agree not to retaliate against music venues for using other ticketing companies for 10 years. In 2019, the department investigated and concluded that Live Nation had repeatedly violated this agreement and extended the ban on retaliation against music venues until 2025.
Ticketmaster has repeatedly clashed with artists and fans over the years. Pearl Jam went after the company in 1994, although the Justice Department ultimately declined to file charges. More recently, Bruce Springsteen fans were furious about the high cost of tickets due to the platform's dynamic pricing system.
Ticketmaster has also had disputes with its industry competitors. In 2015 StubHub sued Ticketmaster and the Golden State Warriors, alleging it unfairly forced fans seeking to resell tickets to use Ticketmasters' resale exchange. StubHub alleged in the lawsuit that the organizations prevented fans from deciding how they wanted to resell their tickets and artificially drove up ticket prices.
The following is a statement on the lawsuit released by the Oregon Attorney General's Office.
Salem, ore.OregonAttorney General Ellen Rosenblum joined the U.S. Department of Justice (USDOJ) and attorneys general from 29 states and the District of Columbia to file an antitrust lawsuit against Live Nation Entertainment, Inc., owner of Ticketmaster, alleging that the company is illegally monopolizing the live entertainment industry.
Filed today in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, the suit alleges that Live Nation maintained its anticompetitive monopoly in the ticketing markets by closing venues through restrictive long-term exclusive agreements and by threatening that theaters would lose access to Live Nation. -tours and artists controlled if they sign with a rival ticket agent.
This is a big deal for Oregonians, AG Rosenblum said. “Live Nations' anti-competitive behavior harms fans and artists alike. We are joining this lawsuit because Live Nation stifles innovation, limits consumer choices, inflates prices and accrues excessive fees and we want these practices end.
Live Nation leverages its vast network of amphitheaters to force artists to select Live Nation as their promoter over its rivals, thereby maintaining its promotional monopoly. The lawsuit asks the court to restore competition to the live entertainment industry:
Prohibit Live Nation from engaging in its anti-competitive practices.
Ordering Live Nation to divest from Ticketmaster.
A copy of the complaint is availablehere.
The USDOJ and Oregon are joined by the attorneys general of Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina and Ohio. , Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming.
Grantham-Philips reported from New York. AP journalists Michelle Chapman and Maria Sherman also contributed from New York. Central Oregon Daily News also provided details from Oregon.
