\n<\/p>\n
\n\tFederal prosecutors said Live Nation<\/a> and Ticketmaster<\/a> \u201cillegally used their monopoly power to help themselves\u201d instead of artists, fans, or venues during opening statements for the blockbuster antitrust trial<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tThe 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).\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cToday, the concert ticket industry is broken, in fact the concert industry itself is broken,\u201d U.S. attorney David Dahlquist said during his opening statement (via The Guardian<\/a><\/em>). \u201cIt is controlled by a monopolist. It is controlled by Live Nation.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tLive Nation has denied the allegations, and a lawyer for the company, David Marriott, insisted it \u201cdid not have monopoly power\u201d during his opening statement. He argued instead that the live-entertainment \u201cmarketplace is more competitive than ever it has been before,\u201d and asserted, \u201cEvery customer we get is a hard-fought battle in a competitive market\u201d (via Law360<\/a>).\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tThe Department of Justice filed its lawsuit<\/a>, and insisted Live Nation and Ticketmaster be broken up, in May 2024. In the nearly two years it\u2019s taken for the case to reach trial, the government has skirted Live Nation\u2019s efforts to toss<\/a> the suit. But the scope of the DOJ\u2019s 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.<\/p>\n \n\tBut the judge did allow the DOJ\u2019s two most significant claims to remain. First, that Live Nation illegally \u201cties\u201d 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\u2019t use Ticketmaster.\u00a0<\/p>\n