(The Center Square) – Taylor Swift’s 2022 Eras Tour gets credit as the trigger, Congress couldn’t help, and more than three dozen state attorneys general – including North Carolina’s Jeff Jackson – are poised for a breakup.
The trial for the owner of Ticketmaster began Monday. Live Nation will try to fend off charges of creating an unlawful monopoly. Thirty-nine state prosecutors are signed on with the U.S. Department of Justice.
“Live Nation is illegally driving up ticket prices,” Jackson said. “Live Nation owns the tickets, the venues, and the tours, and uses its power to charge higher prices for tickets and tack on ridiculous fees knowing fans have no choice but to pay. We want to break up this monopoly and bring ticket inflation down.”
Live Nation and Ticketmaster are connected to a number of amphitheaters in North Carolina. Additionally, some large arenas are also tied to the entertainment giant. Among them large and small are the Lenovo Center and the Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek in Raleigh; First Horizon Coliseum in Greensboro; Live Oak Bank Pavilion in Wilmington; Durham Performing Arts Center, or DPAC, and the Carolina Theatre in Durham; Spectrum Center in Charlotte; and the Orange Peel and the Harrah’s Cherokee Center in Asheville.
Jackson and other prosecutors say fans are squeezed by inflated prices and unnecessary fees for concert tickets; venues are “locked” in long-term exclusive agreements, with threats of losing major entertainers; and artists are leveraged by “dominant control over large amphitheaters” pivotal to their tours.
In at least one estimate, Ticketmaster handles more than 80% of major concert venues. Others say less.
The case seeks separation of Ticketmaster and venue partner Oak View Group in order to restore a market, plaintiffs say.
Filed May 23, 2024, when now-Gov. Josh Stein was attorney general and Jackson was in the U.S. House of Representatives, the Department of Justice – Merrick Garland was the Biden administrator back then – is leading plaintiffs.
David Dahlquist leads the Justice Department from his role as a lawyer in the antitrust division. David Marriott is lead counsel for Live Nation.
