Oregon, Washington AGs join antitrust lawsuit against Ticketmaster, Live Nation

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — The United States Department of Justice filed a lawsuit along with 29 states, including Oregon and Washington, in an effort to break up the Ticketmaster and Live Nation “ticket monopoly.”

The lawsuit, filed Thursday morning, claims that “companies used their dominance over concert tickets to undermine competition for the ticketing of live events, driving up ticket costs for individuals,” Washington State Attorney General Bob Ferguson said in a press release.

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The suit also claims that Live Nation and Ticketmaster violated the Sherman Antitrust Act by increasing barriers for other companies and eliminating rivals, leading to an “unlawful monopoly over the live entertainment industry.”

In Washington, several large concert venues including RV Inn Style Resorts Amphitheater, the Gorge Amphitheater and White River Amphitheater, are all managed by Live Nation. In Oregon, they manage Hayden Home Amphitheater and the Moda Center among other smaller venues. In the United States, they operate over 250 venues total including over 60 of the top 100.

The lawsuit further alleges Live Nation’s ownership of the platform Ticket Master helps it control 80% of concert tickets at major venues, manages 400 artists, controls 60% of promotions and owns or controls 60% of large venues. All of which insulates it and squeezes out smaller competitors like Portland’s Waterfront Blues Fest.

Representatives with Blues Fest – a staple of the summer – claim the monopolistic practices by Live Nation have threatened the artists they’re able to bring in.

“Our DNA is local independent music here in Portland and so it’s important that we find ways to protect ourselves, ” said Blues Fest’s Christina Fuller. “Even if we are big in Portland, you know, competing against multinational companies is challenging.”

But it’s also the sheer money, since an artist the Blues Fest offered $75,000, Live Nation signed instead for $225,000.

“What most of us are looking for as we follow along to what’s happening with Live Nation and Ticketmaster, is some version of leveling of the playing field,” Fuller added.

“This is a big deal for Oregonians,” said Oregon AG Ellen Rosenblum. “Live Nation’s anticompetitive conduct harms fans and artists alike. We’re joining this lawsuit because Live Nation stifles innovation, limits consumer choices, inflates prices, and piles on excessive fees — and we want those practices to end.”

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As part of the lawsuit, the Department of Justice is calling on Live Nation to divest from Ticketmaster and to prohibit Live Nation from engaging in anticompetitive practices.

“Free enterprise is built on companies competing,” AG Ferguson said. “Instead, these industry leaders squeezed out the competition to increase their profits, at the expense of fans. My office is partnering with this bipartisan coalition to put an end to this monopoly.”

According to the lawsuit, following the Live Nation and Ticketmaster merger in 2010, they began acquiring companies in the entertainment industry and neutralizing rivals.

Live Nation began taking over smaller independent promoters, making deals even if not economically sensical to guarantee competitors couldn’t “drive the price up” for artists, AG Ferguson said in a statement

That allegedly includes one instance where Live Nation pressured a venue owner who wanted to use a rival ticketer by letting them retain more revenue for sticking with Ticketmaster. Despite that pressure, the venue switched to a different ticketing service.

In response, the lawsuit said that Live Nation rerouted its concerts to different venues and demanded that the venue no longer allow the resale of tickets for any Live Nation Events which cost the venue even more money.

The lawsuit also claims that Live Nation would lock venues into long-term contracts with Ticketmaster as a way to keep out competitors, resulting in higher prices as they maintain control without the need to innovate or improve services.

In an online response, Live Nation said this doesn’t actually address issues it believes is behind high ticket prices, such as third-party resellers and bot-buying tickets. Additionally, the company believes it will prevail in court.

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