Ticketmaster owner Live Nation facing monopoly lawsuit - after criticism from Taylor Swift

The US Justice Department (DOJ) is suing Live Nation, arguing the big concert promoter and its subsidiary, Ticketmaster, have been "monopolising" the live events industry.

ticketmaster owner live nation facing monopoly lawsuit - after criticism from taylor swift

Taylor Swift criticised Ticketmaster for how they handled the ticket sale for her Eras tour in 2022. File Pic: AP

The antitrust lawsuit was launched on Thursday by the DOJ, 30 US states, and the District of Columbia, with US Attorney General Merrick Garland saying: "It is time to break up Live Nation."

The entertainment company merged with Ticketmaster back in 2010. Through Ticketmaster, Live Nation now controls roughly 80% or more of big venues' primary ticketing for concerts, the suit says.

A Live Nation spokesperson said the company would defend itself "against these baseless allegations" and said the DOJ would lose in court because the case "ignores the basic economics of live entertainment".

Ticketmaster, which overwhelmingly dominates the ticketing industry, has for years left fans and artists frustrated by hidden fees, rising costs, and limited ticket availability due to presales.

Its dominance in the industry came under scrutiny by US politicians in 2022, when Ticketmaster was forced to cancel its general sale of tickets to Taylor Swift's much-anticipated Eras tour due to "extraordinarily high demands".

At the time, the superstar criticised Ticketmaster on social media, saying it was "excruciating for me to just watch mistakes happen with no recourse" after Swift's fans reported long wait times and site outages during the presales.

The star said 2.4 million fans had been able to purchase tickets, which was "truly amazing... but it really p***** me off that a lot of them feel like they went through several bear attacks to get them".

Thursday's legal action underscores the aggressive approach President Joe Biden's antitrust enforcers have adopted as they seek to create more competition in a wide range of industries, from "big tech", to healthcare, and groceries.

In March, the Justice Department filed a lawsuit against Apple alleging that the tech giant has monopoly power in the smartphone market.

"Live Nation relies on unlawful, anticompetitive conduct to exercise its monopolistic control over the live events industry

in the United States at the cost of fans, artists, smaller promoters, and venue operators," Mr Garland said.

He added that, as a result, fans pay more in fees, artists have fewer opportunities to perform, and smaller promoters get squeezed out.

The lawsuit says Live Nation directly manages more than 400 musical artists and controls around 60% of concert promotions at major venues.

It also owns or controls more than 265 concert venues in North America.

'Taylor Swift bill' signed into Minnesota law

Matty Healy reacts to Taylor Swift's 'diss track'

In 2010, the Justice Department approved Ticketmaster's controversial merger with Live Nation, with conditions intended

to stop the combined company from harming competition.

In 2020, a court extended most of the DOJ's oversight of the merger to 2025 because, the department said, Ticketmaster

retaliated against stadiums and arenas that opted to use other ticketing companies.

Live Nation has said in the past that it was confident its business practices were legal, and that the probe had been prompted by complaints from rivals, including re-sellers.

A spokesperson for the company said on Thursday that the lawsuit "won't solve the issues fans care about relating to ticket prices, service fees, and access to in-demand shows".

Live Nation added that "calling Ticketmaster a monopoly may be a PR win for the DOJ in the short term, but it will lose in court because it ignores the basic economics of live entertainment" - stating that most service fees go to venues.

OTHER NEWS

28 minutes ago

German's Can switched Spanish holiday for Euro 2024 and opening-match goal

28 minutes ago

Turkey aim to bounce back from Euro flop against debutants Georgia

28 minutes ago

Ronaldo faces Schick in battle of top marksmen from last Euros

28 minutes ago

Buksa to lead Polish attack in place of Lewandowski against Dutch

28 minutes ago

Online misogynistic content and harmful algorithms drive new anti-domestic violence push

28 minutes ago

Winter Storm Maps Show Where State Could Be Hit With 7 Inches of Snow

28 minutes ago

Tito Mboweni throws shade at Zuma: ‘Why did you do this?”

28 minutes ago

Watch as the man who taught Michael Jackson the Moonwalk does it live in London

28 minutes ago

The anti-Ulez vote helped Tories win in Uxbridge but has pro-car agenda run out of road?

31 minutes ago

Toxic garlic should have prompted EPA to warn against gardening near Ohio derailment, watchdog says

32 minutes ago

Euros 2024: German Police Shoot Man Wielding Axe Near Zone For Dutch Football Fans In Hamburg

32 minutes ago

As Kate Middleton gets back behind the camera, how the Princess' passion for taking pictures has seen her capture some of the most touching royal photos in decades

32 minutes ago

Kate Middleton's children Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis share their first message to the family's social media accounts as they wish 'Papa' Prince William a 'Happy Father's Day'

33 minutes ago

Taylor Swift leaves tennis star Iga Swiatek in tears after giving French Open champion a hand-written note as she watched an Eras Tour show

33 minutes ago

Alpine’s F1 misfortunes carry over to Le Mans with early race catastrophes

33 minutes ago

Greens justify £350bn spending plan

33 minutes ago

George, Charlotte and Louis issue first ever royal statement with new Father's Day photo

34 minutes ago

Weather partly cloudy

34 minutes ago

Aston Villa transfer news: Why heroic Tammy Abraham return has no downside

34 minutes ago

Lakers News: Jerry West’s Legacy Honored by Former Lakers Champion in Emotional Tribute

35 minutes ago

With rain on the way, Lake Houston being lowered by a foot

35 minutes ago

Video: Dramatic moment armed German police close in on axeman near Euro 2024 fan zone in Hamburg before shooting him after he made firebomb threat just hours before Netherlands clash with Poland

37 minutes ago

Experts warn gardeners DON'T install artificial 'fake' grass this summer - here's why

37 minutes ago

Dramatic moment armed German police close in on axeman near Euro 2024 fan zone in Hamburg before shooting him after he made firebomb threat just hours before Netherlands clash with Poland

38 minutes ago

Peter Dutton’s plan to ditch 2030 emissions target would drive up power bills, Penny Wong says

38 minutes ago

‘I made millions for doing nothing!’: How rapper Vanilla Ice built a real estate and media empire — he's reportedly worth $20 million

38 minutes ago

Mavs knock on top-four door, extend Firebirds' misery

38 minutes ago

How to Debloat Windows 11 for Optimal Performance

38 minutes ago

Are Holland and Netherlands the same country? Here's why Virgil van Dijk's team are called by two names

38 minutes ago

Red Bull tipped to ‘walk it’ at Spanish GP under one key condition

38 minutes ago

Starting from scratch at 40? I’d use Warren Buffett’s golden rule to build wealth

38 minutes ago

Loving husband and father who was diagnosed with leukaemia in 1989 and infected with Hepatitis C through contaminated blood products was unable to recognise his own children after being 'abandoned'  by the UK's healthcare system

38 minutes ago

How David Beckham is swapping the bright lights of the A-list for idyllic country living - just like The Good Life's Tom and Barbara

38 minutes ago

Edinburgh studio flat with bunk bed in kitchen hits the market for an eye-watering £950 a month

38 minutes ago

Can YOU find the three broken suitcases within 30 seconds? Test your eagle eyes with this tricky brainteaser

38 minutes ago

Dave Cassin: Ultra-fit bodybuilder husband suddenly dies after celebrating anniversary

38 minutes ago

What England's axed Euro 2024 players are getting up to on their summers off from Marcus Rashford partying out in Cannes to Jack Grealish jetsetting off to Dubai

38 minutes ago

Two boats crash into each other and man thrown overboard as brutal gales plunge Isle of Wight annual yacht race into chaos

38 minutes ago

The 'David vs Goliath' court battles... where the little guy wins: How huge corporations like McDonalds, Vogue and Louis Vuitton dragged small businesses into legal battles in a bid to 'protect their brands' - but common sense prevailed!

38 minutes ago

Families' fury over 'awful' overgrown cemetery as grieving relatives are forced to cut grass and weeds themselves with scissors to access loved ones' graves