Committee chair urges structural breakup of Live Nation Ticketmaster after jury finds unlawful monopolization

At a congressional hearing, the chair urged courts to consider structural remedies, including divestiture, in the Live Nation Ticketmaster antitrust case after a federal jury found the company unlawfully monopolized the live entertainment market.

The chair laid out a chronology of enforcement and alleged misconduct, saying consumers face "extraordinarily high" ticket prices because one company controls venues, ticket sales, artist bookings and promoters. The speaker said the problem traces back decades, noting Pearl Jam's 1994 testimony to Congress warning about Ticketmaster's dominance and describing the 2010 Live Nation–Ticketmaster merger as creating a vertically integrated giant.

The chair summarized Department of Justice actions and later controversy: Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter announced DOJ's 2024 antitrust lawsuit, which the chair quoted as seeking to "break up Live Nation Ticketmaster's monopoly and restore competition for the benefit of fans and artists." The chair said the 2010 consent decree and subsequent enforcement did not rectify the market structure and argued the company repeatedly violated the decree.

The speaker criticized a later settlement negotiated by the previous administration, saying it required a $280 million civil payment that amounted to a "trivial and pathetic slap on the wrist," and he described reports that the settlement was reached without informing the lead prosecutor or the court. He said 33 of the 39 state attorneys general who had joined the original complaint refused to accept that settlement and continued litigation, and he highlighted California Attorney General Rob Bonta's decision to carry the case forward.

The chair said a federal jury recently delivered a unanimous verdict finding Live Nation Ticketmaster guilty under the Sherman Act, listing 13 separate antitrust violations and identifying an average overcharge of "a dollar and 72" per ticket over decades (about $1.72 per ticket). With the case now in the remedies phase, the chair argued that courts must consider "searching and comprehensive" relief, including structural measures such as divestiture or breakup, if the company's structure "virtually guarantees anti-competitive conduct."

Invoking the Tunney Act, the chair urged rigorous judicial review of any proposed settlement to ensure it serves the public interest. The chair also criticized personnel moves at DOJ, saying officials who supported robust enforcement had been sidelined, and referenced Professor Alford's prior testimony and perspective on internal Department of Justice pressures.

The chair said he had joined Senator Klobuchar in introducing the Antitrust Accountability and Transparency Act, legislation intended to strengthen oversight of settlement terms to better protect consumers, workers and small businesses. He framed the bill as a legislative complement to court-supervised remedies in cases where structural change is needed to restore competition.

The hearing also addressed the chilling effect of the company's market power on witnesses and artists: the chair said many performers declined to testify for fear of reprisals that could jeopardize their careers, a point he used to underscore the alleged breadth of Live Nation's influence across the industry.

The chair concluded by thanking witnesses and turning the proceeding over to Senator Blumenthal to continue the hearing. No vote or formal committee action was recorded in the transcript of this opening statement.