Live Nation Seeks to Delay Antitrust Trial to Pursue Appeal

The trial is scheduled to begin March 2 in federal court in New York before US District Judge Arun Subramanian. Last week, Subramanian dismissed certain claims alleging that Live Nation monopolizes the concert promotion market and harms fans through elevated ticket prices. However, he permitted the majority of the lawsuit to move forward, per Bloomberg.

The remaining allegations include claims that Live Nation improperly links access to its amphitheaters with the use of its concert promotion services and maintains monopoly power in the ticketing market. Government prosecutors also contend that the company discriminates against large concert venues—defined as arenas and amphitheaters with more than 8,000 seats that host at least 10 concerts annually—by requiring them to use Live Nation’s ticketing services if they want to stage Live Nation-promoted events, according to Bloomberg.

Related: Antitrust Case Against Live Nation Moves Toward Jury Trial

In its latest filing, Live Nation argues that much of what remains in the case should have been dismissed and is asking the court to pause the proceedings while it appeals the ruling. The company disputes the government’s definition of “major concert venues,” describing it as an artificially constructed market that excludes both smaller and larger facilities. Live Nation maintains that regulators should be required to present direct evidence that the company caused economic harm specifically to that group of venues, per Bloomberg.

Judge Subramanian ruled that the government does not need to show direct proof of economic harm to the defined category of major venues in order to pursue its claims. Live Nation contends that this legal interpretation should be reconsidered on appeal.

The company also asserts that because the court dismissed claims related to monopolization of the concert promotion market, it would be inconsistent to allow allegations to stand that Live Nation unlawfully ties amphitheater access to its promotion services, according to Bloomberg.

At this stage, there has been no final judgment in the case, meaning Live Nation does not have an automatic right to appeal. Instead, it must persuade Judge Subramanian to permit an immediate appeal, a request that faces a steep legal threshold so close to trial. If the judge denies the motion, Live Nation could seek emergency intervention from the federal appeals court in New York, per Bloomberg.

Source: Bloomberg