The U.S. Department of Justice and 10 states have agreed to settle the landmark monopolization case against Live Nation-Ticketmaster. The settlement comes in the early stages of trial, before the court heard testimony from witnesses. The case joins the growing roster of antitrust matters that the Trump administration has actively and prematurely steered toward ineffective settlements. This stands in stark contrast to judicial outcomes, based on facts and evidence, that protect competition and consumers.
PPI’s Vice President and Director of Competition Policy, Diana Moss, released the following statement in response to the settlement:
“Live Nation-Ticketmaster has once again avoided justice by obtaining ineffective conditions that do little to rein in practices that stifle competition and harm fans in live events ticketing.
“The settlement requires Live Nation-Ticketmaster to commit to several conditions. Among these are ‘loosening’ exclusivity provisions in Live Nation-Ticketmaster’s exclusive contracts with venues that stifle competition in primary ticketing and drive up ticket fees; the divestiture of 13 Live Nation amphitheaters; and a cap on ticket service fees at its amphitheaters equal to 15% of face value.
“This jumble of conditions risk the same ineffectiveness and lack of transparency as those that DOJ originally imposed on the 2010 merger of Live Nation and Ticketmaster. The company violated those conditions for years, at the expense of competition and consumers. The same approach, years later, is a green light for Live Nation-Ticketmaster to engage in business as usual because the absence of an effective break-up remedy preserves its monopoly power.
“Under the settlement, the live events behemoth can continue to trap independent venues in the exclusive contracts that are the core of the DOJ’s complaint, with little additional room to effectively use smaller primary ticketers. Moreover, the required divestiture of Live Nation venues simply creates new independent venues that it will target for exclusive contracts.
“Overall, the settlement’s gerry-rigged system of ‘access,’ whereby Ticketmaster retains all the control and power over primary ticketing, will be impossible for the courts to enforce.
“Finally, the settlement’s 15% cap on ticket fees is an easy concession for Live Nation-Ticketmaster. The company will more than compensate for the fee cap by continuing to squeeze out competition, steering even more fans back to its ticketing platform, and collecting monopoly ticket fees on tickets it sells.
“The settlement is a dark day for millions of live events fans and artists. The DOJ had the opportunity to finally get it right by fully litigating an antitrust trial on the merits. There are strong odds that the government would win on liability and break up the company to restore competition to ticketing and protect consumers. If the settlement moves forward, that outcome is now out of reach. The non-settling state AGs, under their own authority, should continue to pursue litigation and effective remedies on behalf of competition and consumers.”
Founded in 1989, PPI is a catalyst for policy innovation and political reform based in Washington, D.C. Its mission is to create radically pragmatic ideas for moving America beyond ideological and partisan deadlock. Find an expert and learn more about PPI by visiting progressivepolicy.org. Follow us @PPI.
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Media Contact: Ian O’Keefe – iokeefe@ppionline.org
