Bates White clients win unanimous jury verdict in landmark monopolization case against Live Nation and Ticketmaster

On April 15, 2026, a jury in federal court for the Southern District of New York returned a unanimous verdict in favor of a coalition of 33 states and the District of Columbia in their landmark monopolization case against the live entertainment industry giants Live Nation and Ticketmaster.

The plaintiffs retained Bates White Partner Nicholas Hill as their economic expert on liability issues. Dr. Hill testified during the trial that there are relevant antitrust markets for primary ticketing and primary concert ticketing to major concert venues and for artists’ use of large amphitheaters in the United States. He also testified that Live Nation and Ticketmaster possess substantial market power with a market share exceeding 70 percent in each of those markets. Further, Dr. Hill opined that Live Nation and Ticketmaster’s conduct reduced competition and harmed artists, major concert venues, and fans.

Dr. Hill’s analysis examined, among other things, the competitive effects of Live Nation entering into long-term exclusive contracts with major concert venues, conditioning the provision of concerts on venues’ use of Ticketmaster, acquiring control of additional large amphitheaters over time, and leveraging its control over large amphitheaters to pressure artists to use its promotion services.

After several weeks of testimony in a trial closely followed by national media, including the New York Times, Bloomberg, and Law360, the jury found that Live Nation and Ticketmaster illegally maintained their monopolies in each of the relevant markets through anticompetitive conduct in violation of Section 2 of the Sherman Antitrust Act. They also found that Live Nation illegally tied artists’ access to its large amphitheaters to their use of its promotion services in violation of Section 1 of the Sherman Act, and that Live Nation violated several state-level competition laws. As a result of the conduct, the jury awarded damages to the plaintiff states on behalf of fans who were overcharged for concert tickets at major concert venues. The next phase of the case will involve determination of appropriate remedies.

Dr. Hill was supported by a team of economists and economic consultants at Bates White.

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