The Justice Department has sued Live Nation for antitrust violations tied to its dominance over the live events industry.

The department joined 29 states and the District of Columbia to file in New York district court on Thursday a lawsuit accusing the Ticketmaster parent of leveraging its unrivaled positions as the nations largest concert promoter, ticket seller and venue owner to undermine competition. It accuses the company of illegally locking venues into exclusive ticketing contracts, pursuing anticompetitive acquisitions intended to stifle competition and retaliating against rivals. The lawsuit looks to break up Live Nation and Ticketmaster after competition enforcers passed on trying to block their 2010 merger. The government hopes to reduce reduce ticket prices and fees by separating the two companies. It could drastically slash the companys sprawling footprint across all avenues of the live events industry.

In a statement, Live Nation said the lawsuit wont solve the issues fans care about relating to ticket prices, service fees, and access to in-demand shows. It added, Calling Ticketmaster a monopoly may be a PR win for the DOJ in the short term, but it will lose in court because it ignores the basic economics of live entertainment, such as the fact that the bulk of service fees go to venues, and that competition hassteadilyeroded Ticketmasters market share and profit margin.

Live Nation president Joe Berchtold, in a May earnings call, said that a breakup of Live Nation and Ticketmaster isnt a legally permissible remedy. It reported first quarter revenue of $3.8 billion, up 21 percent year over year, propelled by strong demand for its ticketing and promotion services.

The long-awaited lawsuit caps years of regulatory scrutiny of Live Nations reach in ticket sales, concert promotion and venue operations. Its not the companys first run-in with competition enforcers. The Justice Department found in 2019 that the company had been violating the terms of a settlement to greenlight its 2010 merger with Ticketmaster by strongarming venues to accept Ticketmasters services as a condition for hosting Live Nation performers and retaliating against those that refused.

Since 2022, the Justice Department under Joe Bidens administration has been pursuing a probe into the company investigating allegations that it continues to violate its prior deal. Scrutiny intensified following Ticketmasters failure to service massive demand for Taylor Swift concert tickets. In a Senate hearing over the ticket debacle, some lawmakers called Live Nation a monopoly that should be broken up. Berchtold blamed its bungling of Swifts ticket sales on bots and cyber attacks.

In a statement, DC Attorney Genearl Brian Schwalb said Live Nation has grown to dominate nearly every corner of the live entertainment ecosystem, developing a stranglehold on the industry that has eliminated any meaningful competition. He added, Almost every sizable concert venue in the District is locked into a Ticketmaster deal, resulting in District concertgoers paying Ticketmasters exorbitant fees to enjoy shows.

Under an amendment to the 2010 deal that allows a monitor to investigate further breaches of the consent decree until 2025, the company was barred from tying services and is subject to a $1 million fine for violations.

In the years leading up to the Justice Departments lawsuit, Live Nation was sued by consumers across several states in purported class actions accusing the company of coercing venues into boycotting competing ticketing platforms. One of the complaints argued that the 2010 merger with Ticketmaster allowed it to overcharge users. Its also been named in investor lawsuits for allegedly failing to disclose the scope of its legal vulnerability for abusing its power in the live music industry.

More to come.