The U.S. Justice Department, joined by 30 states and the District of Columbia, filed a lawsuit on Thursday aiming to dismantle Live Nation and its subsidiary Ticketmaster. The lawsuit alleges that the companies have engaged in illegal practices that inflate concert ticket prices and harm artists.

"It is time to break up Live Nation,” declared U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, marking a significant step in the Biden administration's broader antitrust enforcement efforts across various industries, including technology, healthcare, and groceries.

The legal action follows years of public outcry and political scrutiny over Live Nation's 2010 acquisition of Ticketmaster. The 2022 Taylor Swift concert ticket debacle, in which fans experienced long online queues and high prices, intensified demands for re-evaluation of the merger. Critics argue that Ticketmaster’s mishandling of ticket sales exemplifies the negative impact of Live Nation's market dominance.

The lawsuit contends that Live Nation exploits its monopolistic control over the live events industry to the detriment of fans, artists, smaller promoters, and venue operators. “Live Nation relies on unlawful, anticompetitive conduct to exercise its monopolistic control,” Garland stated. “As a result, fans pay more in fees, artists have fewer opportunities to perform, and smaller promoters get squeezed out.”

Live Nation's response to the lawsuit was dismissive. The company described it as a short-term "PR win for the DOJ" and expressed confidence in prevailing in court. The company asserted, “There is more competition than ever in the live events market,” and claimed the lawsuit would not address core issues such as ticket prices, service fees, and access to in-demand shows.

According to the lawsuit, Live Nation directly manages over 400 musical artists, controls about 60% of concert promotions at major venues, owns or controls more than 265 concert venues in North America, and through Ticketmaster, dominates roughly 80% of primary ticketing for concerts at large venues.

The DOJ argued that Live Nation and Ticketmaster's "vast scope" of operations enables them to dominate "virtually every aspect of the live music ecosystem," leveraging their position to engage in anticompetitive practices.

Democratic Senator Amy Klobuchar welcomed the lawsuit in an interview on MSNBC, emphasizing the need for further congressional action to protect fans. She advocated for measures to increase competition in ticket sales and prevent bots from purchasing large blocks of tickets. "There's just no rules for the road here," Klobuchar stated.

The DOJ previously approved Ticketmaster's merger with Live Nation in 2010, imposing conditions to mitigate anticompetitive behavior. However, in 2020, the department extended its oversight of the merger until 2025, citing Ticketmaster's retaliatory actions against venues that opted for other ticketing services.

Shares of Live Nation fell by 5% following the announcement of the lawsuit. The company maintains that its business practices are legal and attributes the investigation to complaints from rivals, including ticket resellers.