A jury has ruled the Live Nation-Ticketmaster merger to have been illegally operating as a monopoly and overcharging fans.
After a seven-week trial and four days of deliberations, Live Nation – which merged with Ticketmaster in 2010 – was found to have stifled competition, leading to higher ticket prices and inferior customer service (as per BBC).
Live Nation has claimed that “the jury’s verdict is not the last word on this matter”.
It remains unclear which sanctions the DoJ will impose on Live Nation. The company could be forced to split from Ticketmaster – making room for smaller ticket-sellers, lowering ticket prices and increasing emerging artists’ abilities to book venues.
However, Live Nation has repeatedly argued it competed “fiercely” with other rivals and took a settlement with the DoJ in March to avoid being split up with Ticketmaster. US senators have now alleged that settlement was made under “suspicious circumstances”, arguing the deal was made under “political pressure rather than the public interest” (as per NYC Today).
The company could also have financial sanctions imposed, as the jury found that Ticketmaster had overcharged customers by $1.72 (£1.27) on every ticket. Though that number will be used to calculate damages, Live Nation have said they’ve submitted a request for the court to reject the testimony informing these calculations.
In a lawsuit filed nearly two years ago, the Department of Justice accused Live Nation of illegally using their monopoly with Ticketmaster to unfairly raise prices and fees for consumers. At the time, Live Nation controlled more than 80 per cent of live music ticket sales in the US since its 2010 merger with Ticketmaster.
This resulted in an antitrust hearing which commenced last March, where the DoJ alleged that Live Nation used the monopoly to stifle competition, along with using “technology that is held together by duct tape”.
In a surprise move, the two sides reached a settlement agreement that saw Live Nation implement changes to its structure to spare it from being split up from Ticketmaster. President Donald Trump also reportedly pushed the DoJ to reach the settlement, with sources alleging to the The Wall Street Journal that powerful agent and former Live Nation board member Ari Emanuel had told Trump of the antitrust hearing.
However, over 30 states rejected the settlement, choosing to go forth with the antitrust trial.