DOJ opens investigation into Ticketmaster owner
Focus on whether Live Nation abused its power over lucrative music industry
WASHINGTON — The Justice Department has opened an antitrust investigation into the owner of Ticketmaster, whose sale of Taylor Swift concert tickets descended into chaos this week, said two people with knowledge of the matter. The investigation is focused on whether Live Nation Entertainment has abused its power over the multibillion-dollar live music industry.
That power has been in the spotlight after Ticketmaster’s systems crashed while Swift fans were trying to buy tickets in a presale for her upcoming tour, but the investigation predates the botched sale, the people said.
Staff members at the agency’s antitrust division have in recent months contacted music venues and players in the ticket market, asking about Live Nation’s practices and the wider dynamics of the industry, said the people, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
The inquiry appears to be broad, looking at whether the company maintains a monopoly over the industry, said one of the people.
Live Nation did not immediately comment. A spokesperson for the Justice Department declined to comment.
The new investigation is the latest scrutiny of Live Nation Entertainment, which is the product of a merger between Live Nation and Ticketmaster that was approved by the Justice Department in 2010. That created a giant in the live entertainment business that still has no equals in terms of its reach or power.
In 2019, its last year of business unaffected by the pandemic, Live Nation put on 40,000 events around the world and sold 485 million tickets through Ticketmaster, according to the company’s annual report. Live Nation is one of the music industry’s biggest powers in the management of artists, meaning the personal representatives who negotiate business deals on behalf of artists. According to its most recent annual report, Live Nation had 100 managers working with more than 450 artists. It does not manage Swift.
The debacle involving Swift’s concert tickets has exacerbated complaints in the music business and in Washington that Live Nation’s power has constrained competition and harmed consumers.
The problems began Tuesday, when Ticketmaster’s Verified Fan system, which aims to weed out bots and professional scalpers from the process, began doling out access codes to fans who were interested in buying tickets to Swift’s Eras tour that is scheduled to start in March. Ticketmaster received 3.5 billion system requests, causing its app to crash for many users; some who were in the process of buying tickets with their codes were unable to complete their transactions. According to Ticketmaster, 2 million tickets were sold Tuesday alone. But Thursday afternoon, Ticketmaster canceled its plans for a public ticket sale Friday.
On Friday, in her first comments about the ticketing debacle, Swift said she was looking into the situation to see how it could be improved. But she also expressed disappointment in Ticketmaster.