The government funding standoff has resulted in a pause in the Federal Trade Commission's lawsuit against Ticketmaster and its parent company, Live Nation, which accuses the Beverly Hills-based companies of deceiving artists and fans about ticket resales, according to court papers obtained Monday.
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The presiding judge in the case granted the FTC's motion to stay proceedings Thursday until federal funding is restored. The FTC enforces laws against anticompetitive and deceptive business practices.
The U.S. Justice Department submitted a motion to the court last week seeking to pause the much-publicized antitrust lawsuit. According to the filing, absent an appropriation, "Department of Justice attorneys and employees are generally prohibited from working, even on a voluntary basis, except in very limited circumstances."
The lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles federal court three weeks ago by the FTC and a coalition of state attorneys general, contends that the companies "tacitly worked" with scalpers, allowing them to "illegally purchase" tickets to increase their profits.
Ticketmaster and Live Nation's "illegal conduct frustrates artists' desire to maintain affordable ticket prices that fit the needs of ordinary American families, costing ordinary fans millions of dollars every year," according to the complaint.
The companies have not responded to requests for comment.
The lawsuit says Ticketmaster uses a "bait and switch" pricing approach by advertising lower prices for tickets than what consumers must pay and deceptively claiming to impose strict limits on the number of tickets that consumers could purchase for an event, even though ticket brokers routinely and substantially exceeded those limits.
"American live entertainment is the best in the world and should be accessible to all of us," FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson said in a statement last month. "It should not cost an arm and a leg to take the family to a baseball game or attend your favorite musician's show."
According to the FTC, Ticketmaster controls roughly 80% of major concert venues' ticketing, and between 2019 and 2024, consumers spent more than $82 billion purchasing tickets on the platform.
The complaint alleges the companies' practices violate the FTC's prohibition on deceptive acts or practices in the marketplace and the Better Online Ticket Sales Act. The FTC is seeking civil penalties against Ticketmaster and any additional monetary relief that the court finds appropriate.
The Department of Justice and dozens of state attorneys general sued Live Nation and Ticketmaster in May 2024, accusing the companies of operating as a monopoly that thwarts competition and causes fans to pay more in fees. Live Nation responded that the DOJ's suit was "absurd."
That lawsuit followed a 2022 investigation into the companies after a botched ticket rollout for Taylor Swift's Eras Tour came under scrutiny.
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