Refugee 7 Report post Posted January 25, 2010 After nearly a year of review, the Justice Department on Monday set the conditions under which it will permit concert promoter Live Nation Inc. to merge with ticket-selling and artist-management powerhouse Ticketmaster Entertainment Inc., in a deal that could reshape the music industry. As laid out in a briefing in Washington, the conditions appeared relatively straightforward and shouldn't pose major obstacles, thereby clearing the way for the creation of single entity that will be able to manage artists, book them in venues which it owns and sell tickets to their concerts. It will also be able to sell merchandise, run fan clubs, and in some cases sell recorded music. The Justice Department said in a statement that the conditions would "preserve competition" in the U.S. ticketing business. "We were prepared to litigate this case, and I told the parties that," Christine Varney, the head of the Justice Department's antitrust division, told reporters. The decision was being closely watched by business as a barometer of how the Obama Justice Department will treat proposed mergers. Since her appointment, Ms. Varney has warned that businesses should expect much harsher antitrust scrutiny of mergers than was the case under the administration of George W. Bush. But its decision to approve the merger of Ticketmaster and Live Nation —albeit with significant conditions—is likely to prompt criticism from some quarters that the Justice Department's bark is worse than its bite. Both Ticketmaster and Live Nation issued statements indicating that they would accept the conditions and proceed wit the merger. Shares in each company shot up in by more than 16% in Monday afternoon trading. Under the conditions set forth by the Justice Department, the merged company would need to sell off a unit that sells tickets to college sporting events, and would need to license its ticketing software to rival concert promoter AEG Live, so that company can launch a competing service. An AEG spokesman did not have an immediate comment but said the company would have a statement shortly. Ticketmaster must sell its ticketing company Paciolan Inc. within 60 days to Comcast Corp. subsidiary Comcast-Spectacor, a sports and entertainment company, or another suitable buyer. The department said Comcast-Spectacor already has signed a letter of intent to buy the Paciolan assets. The company also would be barred from retaliating against venue operators who want to use ticketing services from competitors. For instance, the merged company would be prevented from blocking artists it represents from playing in those venues. Live Nation stages more concerts and concert tours than any other promoter, and owns or operates 75 major venues in the U.S. Ticketmaster sells tickets for the majority of major sports and entertainment venues in the U.S., and has an artist management division that handles the affairs of hundreds of the biggest acts in pop, rock and country. The chief executives of the two companies have previously said they would like to use their combined power to set ticket prices that more accurately reflect their market value. In Monday's press conference, Ms. Varney said: "We expect that we will see (ticket prices) coming down" as a result of the conditions announced. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jawallac 48 Report post Posted January 25, 2010 I won't hold my breath for the prices coming down. I will keep my fingers crossed... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
nurktwin 2,143 Report post Posted January 26, 2010 there are 3 companies in this deal, live nation, ticketmaster and liberty media!! Liberty Media to boost Live Nation stake Company eyes 34.9%, currently owns 14.6% By Georg Szalai Jan 26, 2010, 09:34 AM ET NEW YORK - John Malone's Liberty Media said Tuesday it plans to raise its stake in Live Nation from 14.6% to around 34.9%. The news of the investment play came a day after Live Nation and Ticketmaster closed their merger. Live Nation shares soared more than 13% in early Tuesday trading to $11.90. Liberty said it plans to launch a partial tender offer for up to 34.5 million shares of Live Nation for $12 each, a premium of about 14.2% over Monday's closing price. Liberty got its stake in Live Nation in exchange for its holding in Ticketmaster, where it was the largest shareholder. Under a stockholder agreement with Live Nation, Liberty can acquire up to 35% of the company. The Malone company also said Tuesday that it plans to attribute any Live Nation it acquires in the move to its Liberty Capital business. Its current Live Nation holding is held by Liberty Interactive. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Echosoftom 3 Report post Posted January 26, 2010 Oh please, call me a cynic but all I get from this is the lobbyist are hard at work in Washington. This is all smoke and mirrors and I don't see anything good coming from it. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
nurktwin 2,143 Report post Posted January 26, 2010 i agree sharon, i don't see any good from this. if live nation and ticketmaster merged as equals, they would each own the same percentage of the company. but with liberty media adding another 34.5 million shares this morning, they would own 35% of the company. so as equals, ticketmaster and live nation would each own 32.5%!!!! on top of that, liberty got the money for the new shares from their subsidiary liberty capital management. so who really owns this company???? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
agirl 0 Report post Posted January 26, 2010 I agree. It's all bull. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KansasPettyFan 1 Report post Posted January 26, 2010 There is no way anything good can come from this. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
surfnburn 5 Report post Posted January 27, 2010 Wow...I haven't been following this. I wonder what the combined market share of live nation and ticketmaster will be. Sounds like they will dominate the market. I have to laugh at "they would like to use their combined power to set ticket prices that more accurately reflect their market value." If the combined company is the market, any price they set will be the market value. This part is scary. "The company also would be barred from retaliating against venue operators who want to use ticketing services from competitors. For instance, the merged company would be prevented from blocking artists it represents from playing in those venues." I hope this DOJ ruling is effective. Of course if the combined company has all the market share, there won't be many alternatives for artists. I guess the idea is to allow the company to merge on the condition that they create a more competitive environment for future competition??? I don't know why they didn't prohibit non-competitive business practices before. You might be right about those lobbyists, Sharon. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
nurktwin 2,143 Report post Posted January 27, 2010 DOJ = Department Of Jerks. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Echosoftom 3 Report post Posted January 27, 2010 ^ HAHA! Perfect! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LizzieB 0 Report post Posted January 28, 2010 I know I'm late on this thread, but I do not like this AT ALL. Something is rotten in the state of Denmark. And, you are close. DOJ = Department of Jackasses. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
