A federal antitrust case against entertainment giant Live Nation and its Ticketmaster subsidiary moved forward Monday in New York, with three dozen states continuing their legal battle after the U.S. Justice Department reached a settlement deal last week.
In Manhattan federal court, Judge Arun Subramanian asked jurors whether they had seen any media coverage during the week-long break in proceedings. When no hands went up, he informed them that Arkansas, Nebraska and South Dakota had reached settlements and dropped out of the lawsuit.
The trial then continued with state attorneys questioning Jay Marciano, who heads AEG Presents, Live Nation’s primary rival in the concert promotion business.
The case nearly collapsed last week when federal prosecutors announced their tentative agreement with Live Nation. State attorneys requested a mistrial, but later withdrew that motion after Judge Subramanian encouraged several days of negotiations between the parties.
On Friday, attorneys indicated seven additional states were close to joining the federal settlement, but the judge ruled that any state without a finalized agreement by Monday would stay in the case.
The 36 remaining states plus Washington D.C. maintain that Live Nation Entertainment and Ticketmaster use intimidation, punishment and other anti-competitive methods to dominate concert promotion and ticket sales, ultimately harming consumers with higher prices.
Defense attorneys for the companies argue the entertainment ticketing market is far more complex than states claim, contending it’s impossible to monopolize an industry where artists, sports franchises and venues ultimately control pricing and sales methods.
Federal officials announced their settlement after securing promises from Live Nation to allow competing ticketing companies greater market access, which they say will reduce consumer costs. However, multiple states have criticized the federal deal as insufficient, arguing the government didn’t extract enough meaningful changes from the company.
