Entertainment giant Live Nation has confirmed its ticketing subsidiary Ticketmaster has been hacked.
A federal lawsuit alleges that Live Nation and Ticketmaster have "monopolistic control over the live events industry."
On May 23, the U.S. Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against Live Nation Entertainment Live Nation Entertainment — aiming to break up the company, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Live Nation and its Ticketmaster business are reportedly facing a consumer antitrust lawsuit that comes on the heels of a suit filed by the Justice Department. The consumer suit is the first of what's likely to be many such suits, because they often follow legal action taken by U.S. or state attorneys general, Reuters reported Friday (May 24).
“Some monopolies are just so entrenched, and some problems so difficult to address, that they require decisive and effective solutions.” Those are the words of Jonathan Kanter, who runs the Department of Justice's antitrust division.
A New York ticket buyer filed a proposed class action suit against Ticketmaster and its parent company Live Nation on Thursday, alleging consumers are forced to pay high prices because the company has used its market power to charge “excessively high fees”—a suit that came the same day the U.S. government sued Ticketmaster and Live Nation for similar antitrust issues.
Live Nation Entertainment (NYSE: LYV ) stock is in the news Friday after the price target for the company's shares was cut by Oppenheimer analyst Jed Kelly. Live Nation Entertainment stock was hit with a price target drop from $120 per share to $110 per share.
Live Nation and its Ticketmaster unit have been hit with the first in a likely wave of new consumer antitrust lawsuits after the U.S. government and states sued to break up the two companies on Thursday.
UPDATE: This article has been updated with a photo from the DOJ news conference, the latest stock price information and a stock price chart.
Ticketmaster parent Live Nation Entertainment's (LYV) stock continued to slide Thursday as the U.S. Department of Justice announced an antitrust suit against the ticketing and concert giant.
The US Justice Department (DOJ) is suing Live Nation, arguing the big concert promoter and its subsidiary, Ticketmaster, have been "monopolising" the live events industry.
Antitrust enforcers allege the nation's largest concert promotion and ticketing company abused monopoly and drove up prices for tickets.