Donald Trump reportedly pushed the US Department of Justice to settle their antitrust lawsuit against Live Nation.
In the case, the US government accused Ticketmaster and its parent company Live Nation of abusing their power in the live events market to create an illegal monopoly.
The suit was first filed in 2024, and it alleged that the company used the monopoly to help stifle competition, dominate the ticketing market and gain money from fans via high prices and surcharges.
The hearing began on March 3 in Manhattan, but a week later, the two sides reportedly reached a tentative settlement agreement that means Live Nation must implement changes to its structure in order to spare it from being split up from Ticketmaster.
Now, the Wall Street Journal has reported that the US President personally pushed for the settlement, with sources telling the outlet that Trump took interest in the suit after being alerted to it by the powerful agent and former Live Nation board member Ari Emanuel.
Emanuel allegedly told Trump he thought the suit should be settled, which it is said prompted Trump to call around to ask major players, “what’s the holdup?”. He reportedly invited both sides to the White House on March 5, when the settlement was said to have been agreed.
While the Justice Department has reached a settlement in the case, more than 30 US states have refused to sign up to the settlement agreement, arguing that it does not go far enough to address monopoly concerns or lower prices. Individual states’ attorneys general can now continue to pursue their own case at state level.
Only seven states – Arkansas, Iowa, Mississippi, Nebraska, Oklahoma, South Carolina and South Dakota – joined the department’s plan to settle their claims.
Shortly after the settlement was agreed, internal messages from Live Nation staff from between 2021 and 2023 emerged, with workers bragging about “robbing” ticket buyers and calling them “so stupid”.
The suit claims that Live Nation requires artists to use its concert promotion services if they want to perform at the venues it also owns, and that it dominates ticketing services through exclusive, long-running contracts with major concert venues.
The lawyer representing Live Nation has argued that the company has never made threats, makes minimal profits, and still has to fight for every deal it makes due to the “marketplace [being] more competitive than ever it has been before.”
Live Nation’s CEO has previously dismissed the claims that the company makes large profits, instead claiming that music concerts are “underpriced” in his opinion.
The calls for Live Nation to create a more balanced ticketing landscape have been seen in the UK too, with the Association Of Independent Festivals (AIF) claiming that the ticketing company had exceeded “market dominance” and pushing for Live Nation and Ticketmaster to be broken up.
It alleged that while “the UK monopoly threshold is 25 per cent [and] market dominance position is 40 per cent, Live Nation control is 66.4 per cent.” In response, a rep for Live Nation told NME that the data shared wasn’t “credible and [is] likely to be misleading.”
There have been efforts made by the government to crack down on ticketing issues across the UK, too. In November, MPs announced that it will now be illegal to re-sell tickets for live music, sports, comedy and theatre events above original cost – collectively saving fans £112million per year.
Massive fees from secondary ticket sellers will also be stamped out thanks to government action, and there is a growing push for a ticket levy to be introduced – which would see smaller venues and rising talent receive a contribution from arena and stadium gigs to ensure their survival.
Pressure is on for the live music industry to ensure that half of these shows are voluntarily paying in by June 2026, or else the government will step in to make it mandatory by law.
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