A jury has found that concert giant Live Nation and its Ticketmaster subsidiary had a harmful monopoly over big concert venues, dealing the company a loss in a lawsuit over claims brought by dozens of U.S. states.
A Manhattan federal jury deliberated for four days before reaching its decision on Wednesday in the closely watched case, which gave fans the equivalent of a backstage pass to a business that dominates live entertainment in the U.S. and beyond.
“It’s a great day for antitrust law,” said a jubilant Jeffrey Kessler, a lawyer for the states, as he emerged from the courthouse.
Earlier, the judge told lawyers on both sides to meet with one another “and the United States” to provide a joint letter proposing a schedule for motions and how the remedies phase of the case would occur. He told them to deliver it by late next week.
The trial brought Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino to the witness stand, where he was questioned about issues including the company’s 2022 Taylor Swift ticketing debacle, which saw Ticketmaster overwhelmed by demand for the pop-star’s Eras Tour and beset by technical failures. Rapino blamed a cyberattack.
The proceedings also aired a Live Nation executive’s internal messages declaring some prices “outrageous,” calling customers “so stupid” and boasting that the company was “robbing them blind, baby.” The executive, Benjamin Baker, apologetically testified that the messages were “very immature and unacceptable.”
Live Nation Entertainment owns, operates, controls booking for or has an equity interest in hundreds of venues. Its subsidiary Ticketmaster is widely considered to be the world’s largest ticket-seller for live events.
In a statement released later Wednesday, Live Nation Entertainment asserted the finding “is not the last word on this matter.”
Pointing both to motions Live Nation still intends to make to refute the ruling, and possible future appeals if it stands, it said the eventual outcome will likely “not be materially different” than the terms Live Nation agreed to in a recent settlement with the Department of Justice.
Live Nation called a ‘monopolistic bully’
The verdict could cost Live Nation and Ticketmaster hundreds of millions of dollars, just for the $1.72 US per ticket that the jury found Ticketmaster had overcharged consumers in 22 states. The companies could also be assessed penalties. In addition, sanctions could result in court orders that they divest themselves of some entities, including venues such as amphitheaters that they own.
The civil case, initially led by the U.S. federal government, accused Live Nation of using its reach to smother competition — by blocking venues from using multiple ticket sellers, for example.
“It is time to hold them accountable,” Kessler said in a closing argument. He called Live Nation a “monopolistic bully” that drove up prices for ticket buyers.
Live Nation argued it’s not a monopoly, saying that artists, sports teams and venues decide prices and ticketing practices. A company lawyer said its size was simply a function of excellence and effort.
“Success is not against the antitrust laws in the United States,” lawyer David Marriott said in his summation.
Ticketmaster was established in 1976 and merged with Live Nation in 2010. The company now controls 86 per cent of the market for concerts and 73 per cent of the overall market when sports events are included, said Kessler.
Ticketmaster has long drawn ire from fans and some artists. Grunge rock titans Pearl Jam battled the business in the 1990s, even filing an anti-monopoly complaint with the U.S. Department of Justice, which declined to bring a case then.
Decades later, the Justice Department, joined by dozens of states, brought the current lawsuit during former U.S. president Joe Biden’s administration. Days into the trial, President Donald Trump’s administration announced it was settling its claims against Live Nation.
The deal also came just weeks after the abrupt justice department exit of antitrust division head Gail Slater — known for aggressively going after big tech companies in her brief tenure.
Music industry giant Live Nation reached a settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice on Monday, ending the antitrust trial stemming from the company’s alleged monopoly over concert venues and ticket sales.
The deal included a cap on service fees at some amphitheaters, plus some new ticket-selling options for promoters and venues — potentially allowing, but not requiring, them to open doors to Ticketmaster competitors such as SeatGeek or AXS. But the settlement doesn’t force Live Nation to split from Ticketmaster.
A handful of the states joined the settlement — even as Judge Arun Subramanian, who is overseeing the case, called it “entirely unacceptable” for having been made so quickly and without anyone having made him aware.
But more than 30 pressed ahead with the trial, saying the federal government hadn’t gotten enough concessions from Live Nation.
‘Historic and resounding victory’
California Attorney General Rob Bonta called Wednesday’s ruling “a historic and resounding victory for artists, fans, and the venues that support them,” in a Wednesday release.
Bonta was among the attorneys general — including those from Arizona, Ohio, Tennessee, New Jersey, Washington, New York and more — to avoid settling.
“In the face of dwindling antitrust enforcement by the Trump Administration, this verdict shows just how far states can go to protect our residents from big corporations that are using their power to illegally raise prices and rip-off Americans,” he said.
“This is a landmark victory to protect New Yorkers from harmful monopolies,” responded New York Attorney General Letitia James on X. The original suit, which James was a part of, sought to break up the company by forcing it to separate from Ticketmaster.
In an earlier statement released in response to the justice department’s deal with Live Nation, James said she would not sign on to the settlement as it failed to “address the monopoly at the center of this case.”
We just won our trial against @LiveNation and @Ticketmaster.
A jury ruled in our favor and is holding the companies responsible for their illegal monopoly that cost consumers millions of dollars.
This is a landmark victory to protect New Yorkers from harmful monopolies.
Judge Subramanian will decide the specifics when it comes to remedies and damages. While that could include a breakup, Live Nation is sure to fight that consequence — which will perhaps be more difficult for the states to achieve since the DOJ exited the case.
After the victory, Kessler would not say specifically what the states will seek in the next phase of the litigation, but he celebrated the moment.
“It’s a great day for consumers. This case is a tribute to the 34 states and the District of Columbia who carried this case forward,” he said.
Slater posted her congratulations to the coalition of attorneys general on X Wednesday. “You made antitrust history today,” she wrote. “You fought the good fight, you finished the race, and you kept the faith.”
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