SALT LAKE CITY — Despite a settlement announced earlier this week by the U.S. Department of Justice, Utah will continue to pursue litigation over Live Nation and Ticketmaster's alleged monopoly.
Utah Attorney General Derek Brown shared Tuesday that the state has joined with 38 other states in a bipartisan coalition that is pushing back against the settlement that was reached.
In a court filing, Utah and the other states claimed they were only given one day to decide whether to join the settlement. According to CNN, as of Tuesday, most of them hadn't signed onto the deal.
“For years, Live Nation and Ticketmaster have made it harder for Utahns to see the artists they love by driving up ticket prices and squeezing out the competition," Brown said in a statement.
According to Brown's office, Utahns spent $400.4 million on live entertainment in 2024.
A federal judge scolded Department of Justice and Live Nation attorneys for secretly negotiating a settlement to resolve the allegations against the ticket company while their monopoly trial was underway.
The states suing Live Nation claim that they used their dominance in the live entertainment industry to drive up prices and limit competition. Some of those practices include buying rivals, tying artists' use of promotion to amphitheaters, and locking venues into long-term contracts.
