Antitrust trial against Live Nation, Ticketmaster continues as states lead the charge
NEW YORK– The Live Nation and Ticketmaster antitrust lawsuit resumed Monday in a New York federal court with three dozen states remaining in court a week after the Justice Department settled its claims and withdrew.
Judge Arun Subramanian greeted jurors in Manhattan federal court by asking if they had heard anything about the trial during the week in which it was recessed after a week of testimony.
After no jurors raised their hands, he told them that Arkansas, Nebraska and South Dakota had settled their claims and were no longer part of the case.
Testimony then resumed with an attorney from the other states questioning Jay Marciano, the chief executive of AEG Presents, Live Nation’s main competitor.
Last week, it looked like the trial might not take place at all. The states requested a mistrial after U.S. government lawyers said they had reached a tentative settlement. After the judge urged the states to negotiate for several days with Live Nation’s lawyers, the states withdrew their request for a mistrial and Subramanian said the trial would resume Monday.
On Friday, state lawyers indicated that seven states were on track to join the federal government’s planned settlement, but the judge said any state that did not have a final signed agreement by Monday would remain in the case until it does.
As the lawsuit resumed, 36 states and the District of Columbia continued to assert that Live Nation Entertainment and its ticketing subsidiary, Ticketmaster, block competition and drive up prices for fans. They claim this was done through threats, retaliation and other tactics aimed at controlling virtually every aspect of the industry, from concert promotion to ticketing.
Lawyers for Live Nation and Ticketmaster tried to show jurors that the entertainment and ticketing business is more complicated than states portray it and that it is impossible to monopolize an industry largely controlled by the artists, sports teams and venues that set prices and decide how tickets are sold.
The Justice Department said last week it settled its case after securing concessions from Live Nation that would open some ticket offices to competing ticketing companies and ultimately lower prices for consumers. Many states criticized the deal, saying the federal government didn’t get enough concessions from the company.
