A landmark antitrust trial against Live Nation began this week in New York with the Department of Justice seeking to prove that the entertainment company, which owns Ticketmaster, maintains an illegal monopoly over the concert ticket industry.
U.S. Justice Department lawyer David Dahlquist summarized the charges during opening statements on Tuesday, per the Associated Press.
“This case is about power, the power of a monopolist to control competition,” Dahlquist said. “Today, the concert ticket industry is broken.”
Attorney David Marriott, who is representing Live Nation, said it wasn’t so. “We’ll let the numbers do the talking. We do not have monopoly power,” he said in response.
The complaint alleges that the company engages in “anticompetitive conduct” that results in higher fees, fewer opportunities for artists, and limited ticketing options.
Per NBC News, Live Nation controls 400 musical artists and owns or controls 265 concert venues in North America.
“Through interconnected agreements associated with Live Nation’s various roles as ticketer, promoter, artist manager, and venue owner,” the complaint states. “Live Nation has created a feedback loop that pushes ticketing and ancillary fees higher while allowing Live Nation to be on all sides of numerous transactions and thereby double-dip from the pockets of fans, artists, and venues.”
This trial, expected to last six weeks, came about after a 2024 lawsuit alleged that Live Nation unfairly dominated concert ticketing and promotion, leaving no room for competitors. The filing occurred after the infamous 2022 incident when Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour pre-sale tickets caused the Ticketmaster site to crash, with thousands of fans and bots swarming the site all at once.
This Taylor Swift incident led to congressional hearings beginning in January 2023.
“To have a strong capitalist system, you have to have competition. You can’t have too much consolidation. Something that unfortunately for this country — as an ode to Taylor Swift, I will say — we know all too well,” Minnesota Democrat Sen. Amy Klobuchar said at the time, as The Daily Wire previously reported.
Ticketmaster began in 1976 and merged with Live Nation in 2010. Over the years, the company has been at odds with fans and artists at various points, with many accusing the company of having predatory prices. The rock band Pearl Jam testified before Congress on the issue all the way back in 1994, but their efforts ultimately led nowhere.
Marriott argued during the trial’s opening day that the company supports the music industry and is “all about bringing joy to people’s lives.”
He also said the amount of revenue Ticketmaster and Live Nation rake in is highly exaggerated, as AP noted.
