A federal jury in the Southern District of New York has now returned a verdict against Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. and its subsidiary, Ticketmaster LLC, finding that these companies dominated the live entertainment sector and violated federal and state antitrust laws. The case was originally brought by the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”), which, as we earlier reported, reached a surprise mid-trial settlement with the defendants under terms that have yet to be approved by the court.
Following the settlement announcement, a short recess allowed the 33 remaining state attorneys general (out of the original 39) to regroup and retain outside counsel to try the case. The trial then resumed. The April 15, 2026 verdict followed a five-week trial in a case brought by 33 states and the District of Columbia (collectively “States”).
At trial, the States alleged that Live Nation controls over 250 “major concert venues” (“MCVs”), and that artists seeking to perform at those venues were forced to use Live Nation as the promoter. The States further alleged that venues desiring Live Nation tours were compelled to use Ticketmaster for ticketing.
Evidence presented to the jury included damaging internal sound bites from Live Nation executives, which the plaintiffs argued revealed threats to venues and exploitation of fans. These communications included statements such as: “These [concertgoers] are so stupid,” “I almost feel bad taking advantage of them,” “robbing them blind, baby,” references to using a “velvet hammer” against competitors, and instructions to “boil the frog.”
The jury found that Live Nation and Ticketmaster unlawfully acquired monopoly power and caused anticompetitive effects in multiple markets, including: (i) primary ticketing services to MCVs, and (ii) primary concert ticketing services to MCVs. With respect to a third market—“large amphitheaters”—the jury found that artists, not promoters, are the customers who rent large amphitheaters, and that Live Nation unlawfully tied artist promotion services to the artists’ use of those amphitheaters. According to the verdict form, the jury also found that the defendants’ “unlawful conduct” (i) “harmed competition” in all 34 states; (ii) resulted in overcharging fans in 22 of those states by $1.72 per concert ticket; and (iii) violated specific state antitrust or unfair competition laws in nine states. Under the four-year statute of limitations, any damages award (which would include automatic trebling) could extend back to tickets purchased from May 23, 2020 forward.
The case now moves to the remedy phase, where the court will determine appropriate relief, which could include damages owed to consumers and a potential breakup of Live Nation and Ticketmaster. Live Nation, however, has vowed to fight the verdict. The company swiftly filed a letter request seeking a quick ruling on its motion to strike the plaintiffs’ damages expert and the portion of the jury verdict based on her analysis, claiming that without her testimony, “Plaintiffs have no basis for their damages claim.” On April 21, 2026, the court rejected this bid for expedited relief, instead instructing the parties to submit a briefing schedule. Additionally, Live Nation intends to renew its motion for judgment as a matter of law and will seek to overturn the jury’s verdict for failure to prove the alleged antitrust markets, monopoly power, anticompetitive effects, and antitrust injury. Although the court provisionally denied this motion at the close of the plaintiffs’ evidence, it agreed to revisit the issue at the conclusion of the case.
The DOJ settlement, if approved, also provides significant relief—Live Nation retains Ticketmaster but must open its venues to rival ticketing services such as SeatGeek; it must divest certain amphitheaters; and it must cap ticket fees at 15%.
The jury’s verdict represents a noteworthy antitrust victory for the States and concertgoers that could result in major changes to the live entertainment industry. Live Nation has estimated that the States’ treble damages could reach $450 million. Meanwhile, attorneys for a certified class action in the Central District of California (Judge Wu) undoubtedly have their own calculations: $1.72 multiplied by the 400 million tickets they claim were sold at inflated prices could yield $688 million in class damages (over $2 billion after automatic trebling). Additionally, among other civil suits pending, Taylor Swift fans have a separate suit pending in the same court—Barfuss v. Live Nation Entertainment, Inc., Case No. 2:23-cv-0114 (C.D. Cal. 2023)—wherein the plaintiff-Swifties piggybacked off the (now-settled) DOJ allegations in the Southern District of New York and claim to be victims of the November 2022 “Eras Tour Ticketing Fiasco.” Plaintiffs in these cases will likely attempt to invoke collateral estoppel based on the States’ recent victory in the Southern District of New York, giving Live Nation even more incentive to vigorously contest the verdict at the trial court and on appeal.
