Live Nation, Ticketmaster's parent company, sued in groundbreaking monopoly lawsuit

WASHINGTON -- The US authorities and dozens of states sued Live Nation successful a groundbreaking antitrust suit connected Thursday, alleging that for years the genitor institution of Ticketmaster abused its manufacture dominance to harm concertgoers nationwide.

The long-expected lawsuit, filed successful New York by the Justice Department and 30 authorities and territory attorneys general, challenges the country's biggest ticketing website and performance promoter, which regulators allege was the mastermind of a program to stifle competition. The governments are seeking a assemblage proceedings and a breakup of the company.

If successful, the lawsuit could pb to sweeping changes successful the marketplace for unrecorded events - an manufacture that came nether aggravated scrutiny successful 2022 aft glitches astatine Ticketmaster blocked millions from purchasing tickets for Taylor Swift's "Eras" tour.

For galore critics of Live Nation, the Swift debacle revealed however a deficiency of contention has led to harms ranging from mediocre lawsuit work to confusing pricing to costly ticketing fees to restrictions connected summons resales - amounting to what galore consumers kick of arsenic decease by a 1000 cuts.

Prosecutors allege that Live Nation's extremity crippled was to monopolize the ticketing and unrecorded events manufacture by cutting exclusive deals with the country's largest venues, ensuring that each their aboriginal events were ticketed done the company's platform.

Live Nation didn't instantly respond to a petition for remark connected the lawsuit.

Musicians, too, person complained of Live Nation's tightly integrated operation, which combines lawsuit ticketing services with power of astir 200 fashionable US venues, a linkage that critics accidental allows the institution to dictate presumption and fees to artists.

"We allege that Live Nation relies connected unlawful, anticompetitive behaviour to workout its monopolistic power implicit the unrecorded events manufacture successful the United States astatine the outgo of fans, artists, smaller promoters, and venue operators," said Attorney General Merrick Garland successful a statement. "The effect is that fans wage much successful fees, artists person less opportunities to play concerts, smaller promoters get squeezed out, and venues person less existent choices for ticketing services. It is clip to interruption up Live Nation-Ticketmaster."

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