Ticketmaster Hit With Fresh Antitrust Challenge From Former Startup

The suit was brought Tuesday in federal court in California by Fanimal Inc., a onetime ticketing platform that has since shut down those operations. Fanimal alleges that Ticketmaster and Live Nation used a combination of long-term exclusive contracts, bundled services and punitive tactics to shut out rivals and preserve their dominance in concert ticketing, per US Herald.

According to the complaint, Fanimal argues that Ticketmaster’s widespread exclusive deals with venues were not the result of fair competition. Instead, the lawsuit claims Live Nation relied on its influence over major touring artists and its concert promotion business to pressure venues into sticking with Ticketmaster, often through contracts that renew automatically. “Ticketmaster did not secure those exclusive dealing agreements through fair competition,” Fanimal said in its filing. “Instead, defendants wielded their access to top touring acts and their concert promotion services to pressure venues into long-term relationships with Ticketmaster.”

Fanimal further contends that Live Nation’s scale allows it to effectively tie concert promotion services to ticketing. The lawsuit claims Live Nation handles about 80% of ticketing at major venues and roughly 75% of online primary ticketing. As a result, venues that want Live Nation’s promotion services are allegedly left with little choice but to use Ticketmaster. “And because major concert venues depend on concert promotion and major artists, the concert venues relent and agree to use Ticketmaster for their primary ticketing services,” the lawsuit states, according to US Herald.

Related: California Judge Expands Antitrust Lawsuit Against Live Nation and Ticketmaster

The complaint also accuses the companies of retaliating against venues that considered or adopted competing ticketing platforms. Fanimal alleges that such venues faced consequences including fewer booked shows or concerts being shifted to less desirable dates. “If a venue selects an alternative to Ticketmaster, it risks losing out on Live Nation’s substantial portfolio of artists and promotional resources,” Fanimal said. “And as a result, Live Nation can extract favorable promotion terms and force venues into exclusive agreements with Ticketmaster.”

As reported by the US Herald, the lawsuit points to remarks made by Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino at a 2019 industry conference as an illustration of the financial pressure venues may face. Rapino said at the time: “We can’t say to a Ticketmaster venue that says they want to use a different ticketing platform, ‘If you do that, we won’t put shows in your building.’ … [But] we have to put the show where we make the most economics.”

Fanimal’s filing also references earlier claims from AEG, the second-largest ticketing company, which has told the U.S. Department of Justice that venues under its management were warned they could lose access to major concerts if they did not use Ticketmaster. According to the lawsuit, Live Nation has even been accused of placing venues on a so-called “black list” for choosing rival ticketing services, per US Herald.

Source: US Herald