Concert Industry Is ‘Broken,’ Prosecutor Says as Live Nation-Ticketmaster Trial Begins

The DOJ has accused the live-entertainment giant of wielding outsized control over the industry, but the company's lawyers claim it "did not have monopoly power" during opening statements Live Nation Trial Concert Industry Is ‘Broken,’ Prosecutor Says as Live Nation-Ticketmaster Trial Begins The DOJ has accused the live-entertainment giant of wielding outsized control over the industry, but the company's lawyers claim it "did not have monopoly power" during opening statements By Jon Blistein Jon Blistein Contact Jon Blistein by Email Bob Power, Engineer and Producer Who Excavated Hip-Hop’s Low End, Dead at 73 More Than 4 Billion People Watched Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl Performance Trent Reznor Isn’t Sure if Nine Inch Nails Will Tour Anymore (But He’s Said That Before) View all posts by Jon Blistein March 3, 2026 Live Nation and Ticketmaster "illegally used their monopoly power to help themselves," a DOJ prosecutor said during opening statements. Jonathan Raa/NurPhoto/Getty Images Federal prosecutors said Live Nation and Ticketmaster “illegally used their monopoly power to help themselves” instead of artists, fans, or venues during opening statements for the blockbuster antitrust trial. The case, which has the potential to completely reshape the live-entertainment industry, officially kicked off Tuesday, March 3, following jury selection yesterday. The federal government has accused Live Nation of using its network of venues to cajole artists into using its promotion services, while also forcing venues to sign exclusive, long-term contracts with Ticketmaster (which it acquired in 2010). “Today, the concert ticket industry is broken, in fact the concert industry itself is broken,” U.S. attorney David Dahlquist said during his opening statement (via The Guardian). “It is controlled by a monopolist. It is controlled by Live Nation.” Live Nation has denied the allegations, and a lawyer for the company, David Marriott, insisted it “did not have monopoly power” during his opening statement. He argued instead that the live-entertainment “marketplace is more competitive than ever it has been before,” and asserted, “Every customer we get is a hard-fought battle in a competitive market” (via Law360). The Department of Justice filed its lawsuit, and insisted Live Nation and Ticketmaster be broken up, in May 2024. In the nearly two years it’s taken for the case to reach trial, the government has skirted Live Nation’s efforts to toss the suit. But the scope of the DOJ’s claims has narrowed, thanks in large part to a pre-trial ruling in February. In that summary judgment, Judge Arun Subramanian dismissed claims that Live Nation has a monopoly over the concert promotion industry, and that its conduct has led to higher ticket prices. But the judge did allow the DOJ’s two most significant claims to remain. First, that Live Nation illegally “ties” access to its myriad amphitheaters to its promotion services, meaning any artist that wants to play one of those venues has to use the company as a promoter. Second, the DOJ alleges that Live Nation illegally forces venues to sign long-term contracts with Ticketmaster, as opposed to other ticketing services, in part by threatening to keep popular tours from hitting venues that don’t use Ticketmaster. Editor’s picks The 250 Greatest Albums of the 21st Century So Far The 100 Best TV Episodes of All Time The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time 100 Best Movies of the 21st Century In laying out the government’s case, Dahlquist referred to Live Nation’s so-called “flywheel,” a self-reinforcing business model that forces artists to engage with it at the level of venues, ticketing, and promotion. As for how Live Nation’s alleged monopoly affects fans, Dahlquist referenced the chaos that engulfed the on-sale for Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour. Regarding the latter, he argued that Ticketmaster faced so little healthy competition, it had not bothered to make significant improvements to its technology. The prosecutor also brought up Ticketmaster’s infamous fees, which he called “the highest they have ever been in the Untied States.” Dahlquist further told the jury that it would even see internal Live Nation messages mocking concertgoers, including one that stated Ticketmaster was “robbing them blind, baby.” In setting up its counter to the government’s claims, Marriott insisted that Ticketmaster takes approximately five percent of ticket prices, and said it only owns a fraction of the more than 20,000 venues in the United States (many of which, especially arenas and stadiums, are owned by sports teams). As for ticketing, Marriott insisted there are “more ticketing options today” than ever before. Trending Stories Jim Carrey Did Not Send an Impostor to Accept His Honorary César Award