TicketDisaster.org Says “Not So Fast” To Merger
In response to reports of imminent approval of the Ticketmaster Live Nation merger, the public interest and live event industry members of the TicketDisaster.org coalition released the following statement:
“This is just the latest attempt by Ticketmaster and Live Nation to convince the public and the Department of Justice to ‘just trust us.’ Anyone who has been ripped off by their outrageous fees and inferior service knows that Ticketmaster does not have consumers’ best interests in mind,” said Sally Greenberg, Executive Director of the National Consumers League, a founding member of the TicketDisaster.org coalition.
“Thousands of consumers, fifty Members of Congress, and a broad and growing coalition of public interest groups and live event industry representatives oppose this merger as an attempt by one behemoth to snap up its only significant rival in the ticketing market and extend its market power into every level of the live event industry. DOJ should block this merger outright, and we have every hope that they will do so.”
“The reports that the merger will be approved, like the premature reports of Mark Twain’s death, are inaccurate and flawed, and are clearly timed to impact the shareholder vote on Friday,” said David Balto, former Federal Trade Commission policy director and counsel to the consumer and industry groups. “Ticketmaster may wish that the competitive problems from this merger can be solved through a piecemeal divestiture, but they are wrong. It is not unusual for merging firms to try to rescue a stranded deal with some type of last-minute remedy, but history has shown that consumers are better off when the antitrust cops reject those desperate pleas and protect the interests of a fair and competitive market.”
More: U.S. Justice Dept. Reported Close To Approving Ticketmaster & Live Nation Merger
Mark Twain’s Not Dead?
While I support corporation’s rights to do business, grow market share and produce results for their investors, this merger is far from legal or justified. Ticket master has used heavy handed tactics that have damaged the consumer and the artist alike. Live nation has not done much better by either party.
May the DOJ maintain a strong position to protect the consumer and may the consumer groups (and the people in general) continue to speak out loudly against this potential action.