The Trump DOJ dropped its push to break up Live Nation and Ticketmaster mid-trial, settling the case on March 8 without warning the 27 state attorneys general and the District of Columbia who were co-plaintiffs.
The original 2024 Biden-era lawsuit alleged Live Nation holds a monopoly over nearly all live music delivery in America and sought a court-ordered divestiture of Ticketmaster. Testimony had only just begun in US District Court for the Southern District of New York when the federal government pulled out. The presiding judge called the manner of the announcement 'absolutely unacceptable.'
The states are continuing the case without the federal government, at least for now. Read the full piece for the courtroom dynamics, what the settlement terms reportedly contain, and whether 27 state AGs can sustain a monopoly case the DOJ just abandoned.
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