Live Nation and AEG Face Antitrust Investigation Over Concert Pricing

Federal regulators have launched a formal antitrust investigation into Live Nation and AEG, the two companies that collectively control the vast majority of the live music industry's infrastructure. The investigation focuses on whether the companies' dominance across venue ownership, artist management, ticketing, and promotion has created an anticompetitive environment that drives up prices for consumers and restricts options for artists.

The investigation follows years of rising ticket prices and growing consumer frustration with the live music industry's pricing practices. Average ticket prices for major concerts have more than doubled over the past decade, a rate of increase that significantly outpaces inflation and has made live music increasingly inaccessible to ordinary fans.

The companies' vertical integration is at the heart of the regulatory concern. By controlling venues, ticketing platforms, and promotion simultaneously, Live Nation and AEG can effectively set prices across the entire value chain of a concert event, with limited competitive pressure at any point. Critics argue that this concentration of power allows the companies to extract maximum value from consumers while offering artists terms that reflect the lack of viable alternatives.

Both companies have defended their practices, arguing that their scale enables them to invest in venue infrastructure, take risks on emerging artists, and deliver experiences that smaller operators cannot match. The outcome of the investigation could reshape the live music industry for decades, with implications for ticket prices, artist economics, and the diversity of the concert experience.