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Live Nation Can’t Beat DOJ Accusation That It ‘Coerced’ Artists With Access to Concert Venues

Live Nation can't beat a DOJ claim that it "coerced" artists with its amphitheater venues, with a judge ruling the DOJ can move ahead with it.

A federal judge says the Justice Department can move ahead with a key allegation in its antitrust case against Live Nation: That the company illegally forces artists to use its promotion services if they want to perform in its massive network of amphitheaters. In a written ruling issued Friday (March 14), Judge Arun Subramanian denied Live Nation’s request to dismiss an accusation that the concert giant illegally required artists to buy one service if they wanted to purchase another one — known in antitrust parlance as “tying.” Among other accusations, the government argued that Live Nation was exploiting its massive market share in amphitheaters — allegedly 40 of the top 50 such venues in the country – to force artists to use its concert promotion services.

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