Ticketmaster takes an average of $7.58 off the price of each ticket to events at major concert venues, a New York state attorney told jurors in a trial Tuesday where dozens of states are seeking to recover damages for fans.
Ticketmaster and its parent company, Live Nation, are accused of abusing their market power to prop up illegal monopolies in the concert industry. The trial in Manhattan could result in the U.S. Department of Justice advocating for the split of Live Nation and Ticketmaster or the companies paying compensation to ticket buyers.
The Justice Department and attorneys general of New York and 38 other states plus Washington, D.C., say the entertainment conglomerate dominated live event markets in ways that harmed performers, venues and fans.
“Today, the concert ticket industry is broken; in fact, the concert industry itself is broken,” Justice Department attorney David Dahlquist told jurors in his opening statement. “It’s controlled by a monopolist. It’s controlled by Live Nation.”
Ticketmaster keeps more fees than competitors like AXS, according to an expert estimate cited by Jonathan Hatch, a New York state attorney. Fans in states seeking compensation are estimated to have overpaid between $1.56 and $1.72 for tickets, Hatch said.
“We’re talking about real money coming out of people’s wallets,” he said.
Live Nation’s attorney, David Marriott, told jurors that Ticketmaster keeps about 5% of what fans pay for tickets. The company is not a monopoly and faces fierce competition throughout the industry, he said.
“Every client we win is a hard-fought battle in a competitive market,” he said.
Singer Kid Rock and Ben Lovett of the band Mumford & Sons are expected to testify at the trial, as are executives from rival companies and ticketing venues, including Madison Square Garden. The Justice Department alleges in the case filed in 2024 that Live Nation has illegal monopolies in certain venues and ticket markets. Live Nation is accused of requiring artists to use its concert promotion services if they perform at outdoor amphitheaters it owns.
The Justice Department also alleges that the company’s Ticketmaster division dominated ticketing services through threats and exclusive multi-year contracts with major concert venues. Arun Subramanian, a U.S. district judge, recently removed several claims from the case, but denied Live Nation’s request to pause the trial to allow it to appeal. The US Federal Trade Commission has filed a separate case against Ticketmaster, accusing the company of allowing exploitative ticket resellers to break its rules and rip off fans.
