Live Nation Verdict: What It Means For You, The Concertgoer

In case you missed it, a federal jury in New York just ruled that Live Nation, and Ticketmaster, have been running a harmful monopoly over large music venues in the U.S.

The ruling found that Ticketmaster had overcharged customers $1.72 per ticket in 22 states, and a judge could order Live Nation to pay it back, totaling hundreds of millions of dollars.

This antitrust battle started several years ago, with the U.S. government under President Joe Biden accusing Live Nation of smothering competition and blocking venues from using multiple ticket sellers. When the trial got underway, President Donald Trump’s administration announced it would settle the case with Live Nation. Some states did join the $280 million settlement, but more than 30 states opted to go on with the trial. Wednesday’s verdict was the result.

Live Nation has issued some defiant statements following the verdict, with one being “The jury’s verdict is not the last word on this matter.” The company also listed a series of pending motions that they say could still eliminate the verdict’s impact.

Just what that impact could be remains to be seen. Concertgoers are hoping it could make tickets more affordable by enhancing competition – opening up the ticketing market to other companies.

The AP talked with Shubha Ghosh, a law professor at Syracuse University who focuses on technology and antitrust law. “There might be a few extra dollars that will come trickle down at consumers who bought tickets through Live Nation. Whether ticket prices will go down in the long run, I think it largely depends.”

Bottom line, this antitrust battle is not over yet, but there is hope that concert ticket prices could come down… sometime in the future.