The Public Now Has 60 Days To Tell A Federal Court Why The Live Nation Settlement Fails Fans, Artists, and Venues
The Tunney Act Comment Period Is Open. NIVA Calls On Independent Stages, Artists, And Fans To Speak Up.
July 13, 2026 — The U.S. Department of Justice has published its proposed settlement with Live Nation and Ticketmaster in the Federal Register, opening a 60-day public comment period under the Tunney Act. Before Judge Arun Subramanian may enter the settlement, he must find that it is in the public interest. The public now has until September 4, 2026 to tell him whether it is.
National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) Executive Director Stephen Parker issued the following statement:
"A jury found on April 15 that Live Nation is an illegal monopoly. This proposed settlement asks a federal judge to let that monopoly remain virtually intact.
With this proposed settlement, Live Nation keeps Ticketmaster. It keeps its artist management business. It keeps its festivals. It keeps its clubs and theaters. It keeps the power to package a tour, route that tour into buildings it controls, and sell every ticket to it. Those capabilities are central to the operational structure the jury found illegal, and this settlement does not address them.
The U.S. Department of Justice initially asked the court to order the divestiture of, at minimum, Ticketmaster - then it sold out to Live Nation one week into a trial that eventually resulted in the live behemoth being found liable on every count of being an illegal monopoly. Six states signed on to this insufficient deal and will share about $18.5 million. Live Nation earns that in roughly six hours. Over the 60 days the public has to comment on whether this settlement serves the public interest, it is estimated that Live Nation will take in more than $4 billion.
Here is what the “settlement” actually does. It leaves Live Nation's ownership, touring control, operation, booking, and ticketing in place - everywhere. It only requires divestiture of a limited number of agreed small-market amphitheaters. It caps one category of ticketing fee at buildings Live Nation owns, and does nothing to stop Live Nation from raising the ticket price, the drink price, the food price, the parking price, and other costs. It promises venues options that venues could already negotiate right now and always. And it enforces all of it through a federal consent decree, which is precisely the instrument the DOJ found Live Nation had violated repeatedly the last time it tried this.
The Tunney Act exists because Congress did not want antitrust settlements decided quietly between a monopolist and the Justice Department - like this one was. It exists so that the people who live with the consequences can put those consequences on the record, in front of the judge who decides whether the settlement is actually in the public interest.
Independent venues, promoters, and festivals have been living with those consequences for 15 years. Artists have. Fans have. Now there is a formal opportunity to ensure each voice harmed by Live Nation is heard. We hope that as many as possible will use their voice."
– Stephen Parker, Executive Director of the National Independent Venue Association
While the DOJ settlement is undergoing judicial review, post-trial proceedings in the case pursued by the non-settling states are paused. Judge Subramanian has indicated he intends to issue a decision on approval of the DOJ settlement in mid-September to October. After that, and a July 30 hearing on Live Nation’s post-trial motions arguing for reversal of the monopoly verdict or a new trial, the states will proceed with a 90-day period of discovery related to the monopoly remedies they are seeking. That will be followed by a separate remedies trial in which the judge will decide the states’ demands for a full divestiture of Ticketmaster, additional amphitheater divestitures, limits on Live Nation’s ability to tie concert bookings to the use of its concert promotion services, time limits on Ticketmaster exclusive ticketing contracts, financial damages, and any other remedies the Attorneys General decide to propose to the judge.
HOW TO SUBMIT A COMMENT
Anyone may comment. Independent venues, promoters, festivals, artists, agents, managers, and fans are all encouraged to do so. Fans should share how Live Nation and Ticketmaster have made for a terrible live experience for them. Comments are submitted directly to the Antitrust Division, and they are then posted publicly, filed with the court, and published in the Federal Register.
View the formal Tunney Act filing in the Federal Register HERE
Deadline: September 4, 2026
By email: LiveNationPublicComment@usdoj.gov
By mail: David Teslicko, Acting Chief Financial Services, Fintech, and Banking Section Antitrust Division, U.S. Department of Justice 450 Fifth Street NW, Suite 4000, Washington, DC 20530
The case: United States et al. v. Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. and Ticketmaster L.L.C., No. 1:24-cv-3973 (S.D.N.Y.). The notice appears at 91 Fed. Reg. 41330 (July 6, 2026).
NIVA will publish a comment toolkit for members, artists, and fans in the coming days, and will file its own detailed comment with the Department and the court before the deadline.
WHAT THE PROPOSED SETTLEMENT DOES NOT DO
It does not break up Live Nation and Ticketmaster, and it orders no divestiture of any kind, despite the government's complaint asking the court to order the divestiture of, at minimum, Ticketmaster.
It does not disrupt Live Nation's vertically integrated structure across ticketing, promotion, venues, and artist management, which is the operational source of its monopolistic capability.
It does not limit Live Nation's control over national tours, which is the engine of the monopoly described during the trial.
It does not reach festivals, which the settlement expressly excludes from its definition of a "Live Entertainment Event."
It does not reach Roc Nation, which the settlement expressly excludes from its definition of "Live Nation."
It does not create any meaningful mechanism for a fan, artist, independent venue, promoter, or festival to obtain relief when it is harmed.
ABOUT NIVA
The National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) is the national trade association representing thousands of independent live entertainment venues, festivals, promoters, and more. NIVA works to preserve and nurture the ecosystem of live entertainment. NIVA empowers members and their teams with member benefits, advocacy on the state, local, and federal levels, an annual industry-leading conference, and more.
NIVA led the Save Our Stages campaign, culminating in landmark legislation in 2020 that established the $16.25 billion Shuttered Venue Operators Grant program, the largest arts investment in U.S. history.
NIVA is committed to equity in its support of independent stages. It seeks to create and encourage opportunities for venues, promoters, and festivals owned, operated, and staffed by people of color, women, non-binary, LGBTQ+, veterans, and people with disabilities.
CONTACT
Lucky Break PR
Kris Ferraro, Kris@luckybreakpr.com
Mike Stommel, Mike@luckybreakpr.com
