[Slowhand] More on Ticketscamster.........

[EddyPauley at aol.com]

>From a local DC TV station:


"On Your Side: Ticketmaster's Other Side"

http://www.wjla.com/news/stories/0209/594509.html


Also of interest..........
Hopefully there will also be an examination/discussion of online scalping 
activities:

Live Nation, Ticketmaster To Face Questioning Next Week

Friday, Feb. 20, 2009

Lawmakers will put Live Nation and Ticketmaster under extra scrutiny next 
week as two panels hear representatives discuss merger plans that are being 
reviewed by the Justice Department. The $2.5 billion all-stock deal, according to 
antitrust experts, could create a dominant force in the live music industry. 
Senate Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee Chairman Herb Kohl, D-Wis.; Sen. Orrin 
Hatch, R-Utah; House Judiciary Chairman John Conyers and ranking member Lamar 
Smith are among those seeking more information. Kohl has scheduled a hearing 
Tuesday, while the House Judiciary Courts and Competition Policy Subcommittee 
will follow up Thursday. Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino and Ticketmaster CEO 
Irving Azoff will likely testify at both.As the hearings approach, the companies 
are ramping up their Washington lobbying efforts. Live Nation, which spun off 
from media conglomerate Clear Channel Communications in 2005, has hired Public 
Strategies and Brunswick Group to manage its image during the merger process 
and is working with attorneys at Latham & Watkins. The public affairs firm 
Abernathy MacGregor Group and law firm Gibson Dunn & Crutcher are also advising 
the two. Although representatives for both declined to comment in detail, they 
released a statement noting that even after the merger, they will "be of 
modest size, with a combined market cap of about $800 million." The companies argue 
that the deal, which they hope will close by the second quarter, will offer 
easier ticket purchases, more flexibility on seating options and increased 
exposure for artists. They also say it will be easier for fans to see their 
favorite artists. Their merger announcement came less than two months after 
Ticketmaster ended its 10-year contract with Live Nation after feuding over money 
generated from ticket service charges and control of customer data.Some lawmakers 
remain skeptical. "Any merger between two companies who would otherwise 
compete against each other raises significant antitrust concern when those companies 
already have significant market power," House Judiciary Courts and 
Competition Subcommittee Chairman Hank Johnson, D-Ga., said in a statement. Sen. Charles 
Schumer, D-N.Y., said the merger would "give a giant, new entity unrivaled 
power over concert-goers and the prices they pay to see their favorite artists 
and bands." Conyers noted the hearings would be the first test of the Obama 
administration's antitrust policy. In his campaign, Obama criticized the Bush 
administration for having "what may be the weakest record of antitrust 
enforcement of any administration in the last half century." The Bush Justice Department 
approved the merger of satellite radio rivals Sirius and XM, Verizon's 
purchase of Alltel Corp. and the pairing of AT&T and BellSouth.Another critic, 
American Antitrust Institute President Bert Foer, said the case will resonate with 
customers who use Ticketmaster and affiliated Web sites to purchase tickets at 
what they believe is already a steep mark-up. Regulators may be particularly 
concerned with the potential effect in the ticketing arena since Live Nation 
signed a deal with Ticketmaster rival SMG last September, he added. "What is 
happening could be seen as eliminating the competitor by buying it," Foer said. 
Creating what the merging firms call a better "artist-to-fan direct 
distribution platform" begs the question of whether smaller competitors can remain in 
the market, he said. A key challenge for Justice and the firms will be deciding 
if and how to divest substantial enough assets that the merged company is 
sufficiently competitive. "There may not be a solution to that other than stopping 
the merger," Foer warned.
by Andrew Noyes

National Journals CongressDaily

































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