United States of America

Jury Finds Live Nation-Ticketmaster Guilty of Monopoly

Should Live Nation and Ticketmaster be broken up immediately or does real change require stronger, long-term enforcement?

APR 16·Updated APR 18

Jury Finds Live Nation-Ticketmaster Guilty of Monopoly

Story

Above: The Live Nation logo was seen at its corporate office in Beverly Hills, California, on March 9. Image credit: Mario Tama/Staff/Getty Images

The Facts

A Manhattan federal jury has found Live Nation and its Ticketmaster subsidiary guilty of illegally maintaining monopoly power in the live event ticketing market after four days of deliberations, concluding a trial that lasted approximately six weeks.
CNN
FOX News
The jury determined that Ticketmaster overcharged concertgoers by $1.72 per ticket at major concert venues as a result of anticompetitive conduct. U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian will determine total damages and remedies in a separate proceeding.
The New York Times
Breitbart
The lawsuit was originally filed in 2024 by the Justice Department and dozens of state attorneys general under the Biden administration. During the trial, the Trump administration reached a settlement with Live Nation, which 34 of the 40 plaintiff states rejected as insufficient.
Billboard
FOX News
The DOJ settlement required Ticketmaster to cap service fees at 15%, divest exclusive booking arrangements at 13 amphitheaters and allow competitors such as SeatGeek or StubHub to offer tickets at its events. The deal also included a $280 million fund for participating states.
ABC News
New York Post
Live Nation shares fell roughly 6% following the verdict, while shares of rivals Vivid Seats and StubHub rose 9.3% and 3.5%, respectively. The company stated that "the jury's verdict is not the last word on this matter" and indicated it would appeal.
Reuters
Yahoo Finance
FOX News
According to states' attorney Jeffrey Kessler, Ticketmaster holds an 86% share of the ticketing market at major concert venues and 73% of the overall market including sports events. Live Nation controls 42 of the top 50 amphitheater venues in the U.S.
The Associated Press
Sfgate
New York Post

Sources Split

LEFT

CENTER

RIGHT

ESTAB
CRIT

CENTER

PRO
ESTAB

The Spin

Narrative A

Live Nation and Ticketmaster are proven monopolists — a jury has finally confirmed what fans have known for years. The company used implicit threats to lock venues into Ticketmaster deals, controlled 86% of major concert venue ticketing and left fans overcharged by $1.72 a ticket. A breakup is the only remedy that matches the scale of this illegal stranglehold on live entertainment.

AG Brian Schwalb on X

Elizabeth Warren on X

Narrative B

The jury verdict is a serious blow, but fans shouldn't expect cheaper tickets anytime soon, while remedies will be gradual and heavily contested. Live Nation's own executives called its size a product of excellence, not coercion, and the DOJ already settled for modest reforms. Real relief demands stronger enforcement and structural change, not just a single verdict that leaves the monopoly largely intact.