Justice Department files federal antitrust suit against Live Nation Entertainment and Ticketmaster: NPR

Penny Harrison and her son Parker Harrison rallied last year against the ticketing industry for live shows in front of the U.S. Capitol.

Drew Angerer/Getty Images/Getty Images North America

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Drew Angerer/Getty Images/Getty Images North America

The Justice Department and 30 state and district attorneys across the country filed a federal complaint Thursday against Live Nation Entertainment and its wholly-owned subsidiary Ticketmaster. The suit alleges that Live Nation created a monopoly on ticket prices for live events in the United States. The civil antitrust suit was filed in the Southern District of New York.

This fight has been going on for a long time: music fans and other consumers, artists, independent venues and even members of Congress have argued that Ticketmaster, which merged with Live Nation in 2010, artificially inflated prices. ticket prices. If successful, this lawsuit could reshape the live event landscape — and the prices fans pay to see their favorite artists — across the country.

State and district attorneys joining the suit include several states that are home to major live event venues, including New York, California, Colorado, Florida and Texas.

Live Nation Entertainment did not immediately respond to NPR’s request for comment Thursday morning.

In the suit, the Justice Department and the states allege that Live Nation and Ticketmaster engaged in several forms of anticompetitive behavior, including retaliating against other promotion companies and venues that worked with their rivals; exclude competitors with long-term exclusive ticketing contracts; restricting musicians’ access to live event venues and strategically acquiring smaller independent companies that Live Nation allegedly perceived as threats to its dominance.

Earlier this month, in an effort to increase transparency for consumers, the House of Representatives passed the TICKET Act, which would require Live Nation and other ticket sellers to list all costs and fees in the ticket price. ‘a ticket to a live event. The bill, introduced by Rep. Ted Cruz of Texas, was supported by hundreds of prominent musicians, including Billie Eilish, Dave Matthews and Nile Rodgers, who wrote in a joint statement: “We stand together to say that the current bill The system is broken: predatory resellers and secondary platforms engage in deceptive ticketing practices to inflate ticket prices and deprive fans of the chance to see their favorite artists at a fair price.

According to the filing Thursday, Live Nation Entertainment currently owns or controls more than 250 music venues in North America and controls approximately 60% of concert promotions at major music venues in the United States. The company also directly manages more than 400 musical acts.

In the lawsuit, the Justice Department and the states claimed, “With this vast power comes influence. Live Nation and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Ticketmaster, have used this power and influence to insert themselves into the center and margins of virtually every aspect of the live music ecosystem.

In the past, Live Nation has said that musicians — not its own company — ultimately set their own ticket prices, regardless of Live Nation and Ticketmaster’s dominance in the market.

“It is not surprising that Live Nation pointed the finger at the artists,” a senior Justice official said Thursday morning. “In an industry in which artists have historically been pressured to obtain compensation for their creative work, it is important that artists are properly compensated.”

“For us, it’s a bit of a red herring,” the official continued, referring to Live Nation’s previous argument. “How is the system set up? How does Live Nation’s control at every level of the system enable a process that is in part distorted by Live Nation’s power?