The Department of Justice settled its antitrust case against Live Nation on March 9, one week after trial began. The terms: a $280 million settlement fund, divestiture of at least 13 amphitheaters, and a requirement that up to 50% of tickets at Live Nation venues be sold through rival platforms [1]. Live Nation retains Ticketmaster. No admission of wrongdoing.

Twenty-six states and the District of Columbia rejected the deal immediately. Senator Amy Klobuchar called it a settlement that "fails to lower costs, help artists, or protect fans" [2]. The state attorneys general, led by a coalition that includes California, Colorado, Illinois, and New York, called the terms a "terrible deal" and vowed to continue their own antitrust litigation [3]. The trial resumed March 17 with the states as plaintiffs [4].

The structural complaint has not changed: Live Nation controls the venues, the ticketing platform, the artist management, and the promotion. The DOJ settlement addressed the edges. The states want the core. A federal judge ordered both sides into immediate settlement negotiations on March 10, but the states said "no chance" [5].

None of that $280 million goes to consumers. The fans who paid the fees are not getting refunds. The monopoly that produced the fees is intact.

-- MAYA CALLOWAY, New York