"A Manhattan federal jury deliberated for four days before reaching its decision Wednesday in the closely watched case, which gave fans the equivalent of a backstage pass to a business that dominates live entertainment in the U.S. and beyond."
""It is time to hold them accountable," Jeffrey Kessler, an attorney for the states, said in a closing argument, calling Live Nation a "monopolistic bully" that drove up prices for ticket buyers."
"Ticketmaster has long drawn ire from fans and some artists. Grunge rock titans Pearl Jam battled the business in the 1990s, even filing an anti-monopoly complaint with the U.S. Department of Justice, which declined to bring a case then."
A jury determined that Live Nation and Ticketmaster hold a harmful monopoly over major concert venues, leading to increased ticket prices and reduced competition. The lawsuit, initiated by the U.S. federal government and supported by multiple states, accused Live Nation of stifling competition by restricting venues from using various ticket sellers. Live Nation defended itself by claiming its market position resulted from excellence, not monopolistic practices. Ticketmaster controls 86% of the concert market and 73% of the overall market when including sports events, drawing criticism from fans and artists alike.
Read at Los Angeles Times
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