Jury Rules Against Live Nation & Ticketmaster In Antitrust Case

A federal jury ruled against Live Nation and its subsidiary Ticketmaster in an antitrust case brought by 34 states and the District of Columbia. According to the Associated Press, after a five-week trial, the jury in New York City deliberated for four days before reaching the verdict against the live music promotion, ticket and venue-owning businesses.

“This is a landmark victory in our ongoing work to protect our economy and New Yorkers’ wallets from harmful monopolies,” said New York Attorney General Letitia James. “For far too long, Live Nation and Ticketmaster have taken advantage of fans and artists by raising prices for tickets and stifling any competition that threatened their power. A jury found what we have long known to be true: Live Nation and Ticketmaster are breaking the law and costing consumers millions of dollars in the process. I am proud to have led a bipartisan coalition of attorneys general in bringing this case and look forward to continuing our work to hold Live Nation and Ticketmaster accountable.”

The Justice Department and 40 state attorneys general, including Washington, D.C., sued Live Nation in May 2024 under the Biden administration, alleging the company built and maintained an illegal monopoly over live events through its control of ticketing, venues and artist promotion. The DOJ settled its claims against Live Nation and Ticketmaster in March of this year, and a few other states joined the settlement as well.

According to a Live Nation press release announcing the settlement, it “will be divesting its 13 exclusive booking agreements with amphitheaters nationwide. All owned and operated amphitheaters will continue to be operated by Live Nation as open venues, promoting competition and maximizing show volume.”

Additionally, Live Nation stated: “There is no financial component to the settlement with the DOJ. This does not settle the claims of all plaintiffs in the lawsuit, and the company has created a $280 million settlement fund to address the states’ damages claims.”

The trial continued with the remaining states and D.C. pressing forward with their antitrust claims. Trial testimony included accounts from executives at three venues who said Live Nation employees, including Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino, had threatened to withhold concerts from venues that declined to use Ticketmaster as their exclusive ticketing partner. John Abbamondi, former chief executive of the parent company of Brooklyn’s Barclays Center, testified that Rapino threatened to divert concerts from the arena after it chose a rival ticketer.

“It’s a great day for consumers,” Jeffrey Kessler, an attorney for the states, told the AP in response to the jury’s verdict. “This case is a tribute to the 34 states and the District of Columbia who carried this case forward.”

In 2020, Ticketmaster faced a $3 million fine from the Department of Justice due to breaches of a consent decree stemming from its merger with Live Nation. The decree, originally established in 2010, was extended into 2025. Under the extension, Ticketmaster must ensure its adherence to the decree, facing a $1 million penalty for any subsequent violations.

The antitrust case initially garnered bipartisan support, gaining momentum after a 2022 Ticketmaster debacle that left fans unable to purchase tickets to Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour.

In 2023, U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) – chairwoman of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Competition Policy, Antitrust, and Consumer Rights – co-led a hearing before the subcommittee titled “That’s The Ticket: Promoting Competition and Protecting Consumers in Live Entertainment.” Executives from Live Nation appeared at the hearing and were questioned about the company’s practices related to ticket sales, fees and other aspects of the live music industry.

Following the jury’s verdict against Live Nation/Ticketmaster, the prevailing states will argue at a separate bench trial to determine remedies and any additional financial or regulatory penalties.

“One of the major drivers of the high cost of living in America is corporate greed and illegal monopolistic behavior — and Live Nation and Ticketmaster are prime examples,” Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said following the jury’s favorable decision. “It is well past time that corporations be held legally accountable for monopolizing whole sectors of our economy, so I am thrilled the jury was moved by the power of our arguments and delivered this historic verdict.

“Live Nation’s monopoly has made billions and billions of dollars on the backs of Minnesotans who have struggled to pay absurd rates for concert tickets, artists who have been stifled, and independent music venues that have struggled to get by. We will argue vigorously during the penalty phase of this trial that consumers, artists, and venues need significant relief and that the monopolies that enable this behavior must be dismantled once and for all.”