By ALANNA DURKIN RICHER and WYATTE GRANTHAM-PHILIPS
WASHINGTON — The Justice Department filed a sweeping antitrust lawsuit against Ticketmaster and parent company Live Nation Entertainment on Thursday, accusing them of running an illegal monopoly over live events in America — squelching competition and driving up prices for fans.
The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Manhattan, was brought with 30 state and district attorneys general and seeks to break up the monopoly they say is squeezing out smaller promoters, hurting artists and drowning fans with endless fees.
“It’s time for fans and artists to stop paying the price for Live Nation’s monopoly,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said Thursday. “It is time to restore competition and innovation in the entertainment industry. It is time to break up Live Nation, Ticketmaster. The American people are ready for it.”
The Justice Department accused Live Nation of a slew of tactics — including threats and retaliation — that Garland said has allowed the entertainment giant to “suffocate the competition” by keeping a stronghold on virtually every aspect of the industry, from concert promotion to ticketing. The impact on consumers is seen in an “endless list of fees on fans,” the attorney general said.
“Live music should not be available only to those who can afford to pay the Ticketmaster tax,” said Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “We are here today to fight for competition so that we can reopen the doors to the live music industry for all.”
Live Nation has for years denied that it is violating antitrust laws and said Thursday that the lawsuit “won’t solve the issues fans care about relating to ticket prices, service fees, and access to in-demand shows.”
“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,”…
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