This is The Legal Beat, a weekly music law newsletter from Billboard Pro, bringing you a one-stop cheat sheet of big new cases, landmark decisions and all the fun stuff in between.
This week: The federal government files an antitrust lawsuit against Live Nation and Ticketmaster aimed at breaking up the concert giant. Beyoncé is facing a copyright lawsuit over a sample that appears on 'Break My Soul'. Elvis Presley's heirs are winning a strange battle for Graceland. and many more.
THE BIG STORY: “It It is Time To Break Up”
Fourteen years after federal regulators allowed Live Nation and Ticketmaster to merge into one concert behemoth, the U.S. Justice Department and dozens of states filed a long-awaited antitrust lawsuit last week that aims to effectively overturn that ruling.
“Live Nation has illegally monopolized the markets throughout the live concert industry in the United States for far too long,” said the Attorney General Merrick Garland at a press conference announcing the case. “It's time to break it up.”
Since the merger was approved in 2010, Live Nation has been criticized for its huge market share. However, scrutiny has increased dramatically following the disastrous 2022 launch of Taylor Swift's Eras tour, which saw widespread service delays and website crashes. While the Justice Department had already begun its investigation before the Swift incident, the debacle sparked widespread public outrage that led to congressional hearings, private antitrust lawsuits and repeated calls to break up the company.
In a lawsuit aimed at doing just that, the DOJ focused on what it called Live Nation's “flywheel model” — an alleged cycle of extracting revenue from ticket buyers, using it to sign artists to promotional deals, and then capitalizing on that repertoire to lock down venues in exclusive ticketing deals.
To bolster that model, the feds say Live Nation engaged in a wide range of anticompetitive behavior, including acquiring rivals and retaliating against venues that didn't use Ticketmaster. In particular, the Justice Department focused on emails between Live Nation's chief executive Michael Rapinoe and venue management company Oak View Group, a “potential competitor-turned-partner” that allegedly helped Live Nation stifle competition.
For all the details, read our full coverage of the Live Nation lawsuit — including our own news on the filing of the case (with the actual complaint filed by the DD) as well as a deep dive from Dave Brooks in these emails from Rapino. And stay tuned for more coverage from Advertising sign as the great case progresses…
Other top stories this week…
BEYONCÉ COPYRIGHT CASE – The superstar was hit with action for infringement for her 2024 chart-topping hit “Break My Soul,” filed by a little-known band that claims one of the song's prominent samples — a clip from New Orleans rapper Big Freedia — illegally left off lyrics from the previous their song.
GRACELAND SNAFU ENDS – A bizarre legal battle over “fraudulent” attempts to sell Elvis Presley's Graceland mansion has ended after a Tennessee judge ruled in favor of his granddaughter Riley Keough judgment preventing the impending foreclosure before the mysterious loan company that orchestrated the incident allegedly pulled its records. But the story isn't over, as Tennessee's Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti launched an investigation into possible “improper conduct” by the shady lenders behind the incident: “My office has fought fraud against homeowners for decades, and there is no home in Tennessee more beloved than Graceland.”
DIDDY SUED 7TH COUNTY PEOPLE – Sean “Diddy” Combs faces yet another sexual assault lawsuit, this time filed by a woman named April Lambros who claims he drugged and sexually assaulted her 30 years ago while she was a student in New York. Lambros is the seventh alleged victim to file a lawsuit accusing Combs of sexual abuse in the past six months, including one filed just days ago. He also faces an apparent federal criminal investigation.
EARTH, WINDS & DAMAGE – A self-titled “Earth, Wind & Fire Legacy Reunion” tribute will pay tribute to the legendary R&B group $750,000 in damages for using its trade name in ways that a federal judge called “misleading and deceptive,” according to court documents filed last week.
ASTROCOSMO TRIAL UPDATE – Attorneys for Travis Scott, Live Nation and others they reached a settlement to resolve the last remaining wrongful death lawsuit stemming from the fatal crowd crush at the 2021 Astroworld music festival that left 10 fans dead. However, thousands of claims from injured fans remain pending, with a possible first trial set for October.
APPLE CALL FOR HUGE EU FINE – Apple started legal challenge in the European Union court against a 1.8 billion euro ($1.95 billion) fine imposed by the European Commission earlier this year over allegations that the tech giant broke competition laws by unfairly favoring its own music streaming service against rivals like Spotify.
KELLY CLARKSON AGREES WITH PRO – Vocalist they reached a settlement to end her extended legal battle with her ex-husband Brandon Blackstock above the management committees. The divorce itself was finalized in 2022, but the couple continued to battle in court over their difficult business dealings with Blackstock's father's Starstruck Entertainment company, which managed her career for years.
from our partners at https://www.billboard.com/pro/live-nation-antitrust-case-beyonce-lawsuit-legal-news-music/
