Live Nation, Justice Department come to agreement outside of courtroom

This is, of course, quite a sweet deal for a corporation that was once looking at being forced to break up by the government. The DOJ filed an anti-trust lawsuit against Live Nation in 2024, which the Trump administration initially seemed like it would also pursue. However, by last month, it was reported that Live Nation was lobbying for some kind of settlement before the case could go to trial. While that didn’t happen—the trial kicked off last week—the DOJ and Live Nation signed a deal last Thursday, lawyers said today. Neither side apparently said anything about the agreement in court on Friday, which Judge Arun Subramanian said today was “absolutely unacceptable.” “It shows absolute disrespect for the court, the jury and this entire process,” he said. Live Nation and Trump’s Justice Department showing disrespect for the legal system? What is this, a day that ends in Y? 

However, Live Nation is not completely out of the woods yet. New York Attorney General Letitia James says that the state plans to continue its case “so that we can secure justice for all those harmed by Live Nation’s monopoly.” During the week of testimony that did happen, people from three different venues testified that Live Nation had threatened to punish venues if they didn’t exclusively use Ticketmaster to sell tickets. Judge Subramanian expects representatives from Live Nation and the DOJ to appear in court on Tuesday to discuss the arrangement.