Live Nation and its subsidiary Ticketmaster maintained an illegal monopoly in the ticketing market, a US jury found.
A lawsuit brought by several US states accused Live Nation of exploiting its dominance of both venues and promotions to overcharge fans by an average $1.72 a ticket. Live Nation sells about 10 times as many tickets as its nearest competitor, and the verdict could lead to the company being broken up, or paying billions in damages.
It follows a series of bruising events for the company: The lawsuit was originally brought after Ticketmaster was overwhelmed by demand for Taylor Swift’s 2022 Eras tour, and the Oasis revival last year saw huge controversy over dynamic pricing driving up costs for fans.