About this episode
Live Nation and Ticketmaster merged over a decade ago and Congress is concerned - for good reason - that the company is exerting monopoly powers over the live event industry. In this episode, learn how the merger was allowed to happen in the first place, the problems that industry participants and competitors are having with the company, and what Congress is thinking of doing about it. Please Support Congressional Dish – Quick Links Contribute monthly or a lump sum via PayPal Support Congressional Dish via Patreon (donations per episode) Send Zelle payments to: Donation@congressionaldish.com Send Venmo payments to: @Jennifer-Briney Send Cash App payments to: $CongressionalDish or Donation@congressionaldish.com Use your bank's online bill pay function to mail contributions to: 5753 Hwy 85 North, Number 4576, Crestview, FL 32536. Please make checks payable to Congressional Dish Thank you for supporting truly independent media! View the show notes on our website at https://congressionaldish.com/cd267-the-monopoly-powers-of-live-nation-ticketmaster We're Not Wrong Live Show Wednesday, March 1 | 8:00 PM PSTPianoFight Main Stage San Francisco Get tickets Background Sources Event Ticketing Market "Event Ticket Sales: Market Characteristics and Consumer Protection Issues" [GAO-18-347]. Apr 12, 2018. U.S. Government Accountability Office. Live Nation Overview "Live Nation Entertainment Website." "Live Nation Entertainment 2021 Annual Report" "Live Nation Entertainment: Totals." Open Secrets. "Live Nation Entertainment: Lobbying." Open Secrets. Ticketmaster "Everyone hates Ticketmaster. Is everyone wrong?" August Brown. Jan 24, 2023. The Seattle Times. Taylor Swift "Taylor Swift 'Ticket Sale Disaster' Sparks Suit Against Ticketmaster, Live Nation." Ashley Cullins. Dec 5, 2022. The Hollywood Reporter. "Taylor Swift on Ticketmaster Tech Issues: 'We Were Assured' They Could Handle the Demand." Caitlin Huston. Nov 18, 2022. The Hollywood Reporter. "Taylor Swift Tour: Live Nation CEO Says 'Everybody Crashed the Door' During Presale." Caitlin Huston. Nov 17, 2022. The Hollywood Reporter. Bad Bunny "Spending a Month's Salary to See Bad Bunny, Only to Be Turned Away." Maria Abi-Habib. Dec 16, 2022. The New York Times. "Ticketmaster Crashes Right on Cue During Bad Bunny Ticket Sale." Dylan Smith. Apr 15, 2021. Digital Music News. BTS "BTS Vegas Sells Out as Ticketmaster Verified Fan Fails Fans (Again)" Dave Clark. Mar 3, 2022. Ticket News. "BTS SoFi Stadium Concert Tickets Sold Out In Pre-sale; ARMY Expresses Disdain On Twitter." Fengyen Chiu. Oct 11, 2021. Republic World. Adele "Sky-High 'Dynamic' Adele Ticket Prices Sting 'Verified' Fans." Dave Clark. Dec 8, 2021. Ticket News. Pixies "Everyone Hates Ticketmaster — But No One Can Take It Down." Steve Knopper. Nov 1, 2010. Wired. Bruce Sprintsteen "Bruce Springsteen Defends High Ticket Prices for Upcoming Tour." Alex Young. Nov 18, 2022. Consequence Sound. "Bruce Springsteen 'Furious' At Ticketmaster, Rails Against Live Nation Merger." Daniel Kreps. Feb 4, 2009. Rolling Stone. Pearl Jam "1994: A look back at when Pearl Jam took on Ticketmaster." Shawn Garrett. Nov 17, 2022. KIRO 7 News. "Pearl Jam: Taking on Ticketmaster." Eric Boehlert. Dec 28, 1995. Rolling Stone. "Pearl Jam Musicians Testify On Ticketmaster's Prices." Reuters. Jul 1, 1994. The New York Times. Ticketmaster Scalper Program "Ticketmaster Resale Returns to Broker-Focused Conferences Despite Past Controversy." Dave Clark. Jul 8, 2021. Ticket News. "'Hand caught in a cookie jar': Band managers demand answers about Ticketmaster's secret scalper program." Rachel Houlihan et al. Oct 18, 2018. CBC News. "'A public relations nightmare': Ticketmaster recruits pros for secret scalper program." Dave Seglins et al. Sep 19, 2018. CBC News. Antitrust Policy and Enforcement "Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Doha Mekki of the Antitrust Division Delivers Remarks at Mercatus Center Second Annual Antitrust Forum: Policy in Transition." Doha Mekki. Jan 26, 2023. U.S. Department of Justice. "Competitive Edge: Structural presumption in U.S. merger control policy would strengthen modern antitrust enforcement." John Kwoka. Dec 19, 2018. Washington Center for Equitable Growth. "Supreme Court Overrules 96 Year-Old Rule in Dr. Miles and Holds Vertical Price Agreements Are Neither Per Se Illegal Nor Per Se Legal, But Subject to Case-By-Case Test." Jul 5, 2007. Sheppard Mullin. "In Major Antitrust Decision, Supreme Court Overrules 1911 Precedent to Declare Vertical Minimum Price Restraints to Be Governed by Rule of Reason." Alan S. Middleton. Jul 3, 2007. Davis Wright Tremaine LLP. "Section 7 of the Clayton Act: Its Application to the Conglomerate Merger." Richard B. Blackwell. March 1972 *13(3). William & Mary Law Review. Mergers and Monopoly Power "Anti-Monopoly Basics: Monopoly by the Numbers." Open Markets Institute. Live Nation-Ticketmaster Merger "U.S. and Plaintiff States v. Ticketmaster Entertainment, Inc. and Live Nation Entertainment, Inc." U.S. Department of Justice. Final Judgment (July 2010) Motion to Modify Final Judgment and Enter Amended Final Judgment (January 2020) Amended Final Judgment (January 2020) Kroger-Albertsons Merger "Kroger-Albertsons Merger Faces Long Road Before Approval." Julie Creswell. Jan 23, 2023. The New York Times. "FTC issues 2nd request to Kroger on planned Albertsons acquisition." Russell Redman. Dec 6, 2022. Winsight Grocery Business. Laws S.3183 - BOTS Act of 2016 Bills S.225 - Competition and Antitrust Law Enforcement Reform Act of 2021 Sponsor: Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) Audio Sources That's the Ticket: Promoting Competition and Protecting Consumers in Live Entertainment January 24, 2023 Senate Committee on the Judiciary Witnesses: Joe Berchtold, President and Chief Financial Officer, Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. Jack Groetzinger, Chief Executive Officer, SeatGeek, Inc. Jerry Mickelson, Chief Executive Officer and President, Jam Productions, LLC Sal Nuzzo, Senior Vice President, The James Madison Institute Kathleen Bradish, Vice President for Legal Advocacy, American Antitrust Institute Clyde Lawrence, Singer-songwriter, Lawrence The Ticketmaster/Live Nation Merger: What Does it Mean for Consumers and the Future of the Concert Business? February 24, 2009 Senate Committee on the Judiciary, Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy and Consumer Rights Watch on C-SPAN Witnesses: Irving Azoff, Chief Executive Officer, Ticketmaster Entertainment, Inc. Jerry Mickelson, Chairman and Executive Vice President, JAM Productions Michael Rapino, President and Chief Executive Officer, Live Nation, Inc. David A. Balto, Senior Fellow, Center for American Progress Action Fund Seth Hurwitz, Co-Owner, I.M.P. Productions and 9:30 Club Pearl Jam vs. Ticketmaster (1994) YouTube Cover Art Design by Only Child Imaginations Music Presented in This Episode Tired of Being Lied To by David Ippolito