Ticketmaster and Live Nation lose antitrust trial in New York

A New York jury has ruled that entertainment giant Live Nation and its Ticketmaster subsidiary maintained a harmful monopoly over major concert venues, delivering a significant blow to the company that dominates the U.S. live entertainment industry.

After four days of deliberation, jurors found that Ticketmaster’s anticompetitive practices resulted in consumers in 22 states paying an additional $1.72 per ticket. While this verdict won’t bring immediate relief to concertgoers frustrated by high ticket prices, it could potentially cost Live Nation hundreds of millions of dollars when the judge determines penalties in the coming months.

Live Nation responded to the decision with a statement asserting that the verdict “is not the last word on this matter.” The company predicted that once all appeals are exhausted, the final outcome likely won’t differ significantly from a settlement it reached with the federal government shortly after the trial began. That agreement included caps on service fees at certain amphitheaters and new ticket-selling options for promoters and venues that could potentially open doors to Ticketmaster competitors like SeatGeek or AXS.

The trial provided rare insight into the operations of Live Nation, which owns, operates, or controls hundreds of venues across the country. Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino testified during the proceedings, addressing various issues including the company’s widely criticized handling of Taylor Swift ticket sales in 2022, which he attributed to a cyberattack.

Jurors were also shown internal messages from Live Nation employee Benjamin Baker, who called certain ticket prices “outrageous” and boasted about “robbing them blind” while describing customers as “so stupid.” Baker, who has since been promoted to a ticketing executive position, testified that the messages were “very immature and unacceptable.”

The financial implications for Live Nation could be substantial. Based on the jury’s determination that customers overpaid by $1.72 per ticket, the company could face damages in the hundreds of millions of dollars, which could be tripled under antitrust law. Live Nation estimated in its statement that the aggregate damages would fall below $150 million before being trebled, noting that the jury’s award applied to “a limited number of tickets” sold at 257 venues, representing approximately 20% of total tickets sold.

Beyond monetary penalties, the court could potentially order Live Nation to divest itself of certain assets, including venues such as amphitheaters that it currently owns.

The civil case was initially led by the U.S. government, which accused Live Nation of using its market dominance to stifle competition by tactics such as preventing venues from using multiple ticket sellers. Live Nation contested these claims throughout the trial, arguing that its market position resulted from excellence and effort rather than anticompetitive practices.

“Success is not against the antitrust laws in the United States,” attorney David Marriott stated in his summation.

Ticketmaster, established in 1976, merged with Live Nation in 2010. According to Jeffrey Kessler, an attorney representing the states, the company now controls 86% of the concert market and 73% of the overall market when sporting events are included.

The ticketing giant has faced criticism from fans and artists for decades. In the 1990s, Pearl Jam battled against Ticketmaster’s business practices, even filing an anti-monopoly complaint with the U.S. Department of Justice, which declined to pursue a case at that time.

The current lawsuit was brought during the Biden administration, but days into the trial, the Trump administration announced it was settling its claims against Live Nation. While some states joined this settlement, more than 30 continued with the trial, arguing that the federal government hadn’t secured sufficient concessions.

State attorneys general celebrated the verdict as a victory for consumers. New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport stated that Live Nation’s “illegal, anti-competitive practices” had increased ticket prices and limited fan access to performances, while New York Attorney General Letitia James called it “a landmark victory.”

Though specific remedies have not yet been announced, the verdict represents a significant challenge to Live Nation’s dominance in the live entertainment industry and could potentially reshape how concert tickets are sold across the country.