DOJ to announce antitrust lawsuit against Ticketmaster parent company, Live Nation

Live Nation, the group behind Ticketmaster and countless controversies surrounding ticket fiascos, is facing a Department of Justice antitrust lawsuit later this week.

The company, which has allegedly engaged in price-gouging, tactics to push venues into exclusivity contracts, and other anti-competitive practices, has been the target of calls for regulation for years, coming to a head following the online sale for tickets to Taylor Swift’s “Eras Tour.”

Congressional condemnation and a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing yielded few policy changes, but the DOJ probe could prove the most decisive blow to the events giant yet, which owns and operates venues, sells tickets, and promotes live events. 

Live Nation saw 23 million attendees and made nearly $4 billion dollars in revenue in the first quarter of 2024, a record high for the company. Federal oversight could change the structure of the California-based company, threatening their near-total grip on major sporting and music events in the U.S.

The Biden Administration, which announced a crackdown on “junk fees” in 2023, requiring companies like Live Nation’s Ticketmaster to disclose full prices up front, has taken broad actions to rein in monopolistic companies from taking advantage of consumers.

Antitrust suits against Apple and Google, as well action against major mergers between Spirit and Frontier airlines and Kroger and Albertsons, have positioned the administration as one ready to take on mega-corporations, but Live Nation will likely put up a fight.

Per Politico, Live Nation executives and lawyers met earlier this month with DOJ antitrust officials to try and dissuade their efforts to break up the company.