According to Billboard, the Department of Justice may be preparing to file an antitrust lawsuit against Live Nation. The complaint is expected to call out the company for having a monopoly on event ticketing through Ticketmaster.
The issue stems from Live Nation allegedly using its power to grow bigger while snuffing out its competition. The DOJ has been investigating the company for over two years and its president Joe Berchtold was hoping to avoid a legal battle with DOJ antitrust lawyer Jonathan Kanter.
The case is reportedly related to Ticketmaster’s decision to use exclusive ticketing contracts while signing up venues for ticketing services. The company pays venues an advance with funds from the fees they collect from fans. Notably, the venues get a bigger payout for longer contracts. The DOJ says this practice keeps new companies from being able to compete in the ticketing sector.
For their part, Ticketmaster claim they are open to working with non-exclusive contracts. However, many venues rely on exclusive deals to meet their financial goals. It was also pointed out that other companies use exclusive ticketing contracts as well.
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