Ticketmaster, Live Nation in merger talks

MacMan · #1 02-03-2009, 10:54 PM

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Ticketmaster Entertainment Inc and Live Nation Inc are close to a merger that would combine two of the most powerful forces in the music industry, the Wall Street Journal reported on its Website Tuesday citing people familiar with the matter.

The new company would be called Live Nation Ticketmaster, marrying the world's biggest concert promoter with the dominant ticketing and artist-management company. The companies have ties to more than 200 major artists such as the Eagles, Miley Cyrus, Christina Aguilera, Madonna and Jay-Z.

The paper, citing the unnamed sources, said the boards of both companies have yet to approve a merger and sticking points remain in the negotiations.

The deal, which will not involve any cash transfer, could be announced as early as next week, according to the Journal story.

Ticketmaster spokesman Albert Lopez declined to comment. Live Nation officials were not immediately available for comment.

Last year Ticketmaster acquired Front Line Management, which represents around 200 major clients.

Irving Azoff, head of Ticketmaster, and Live Nation Chief Executive Michael Rapino both are expected to remain at the combined organization but their exact roles have not yet been nailed down.

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NewYorkPost

In a blockbuster deal that will realign the music industry's balance of power, concert-promotion giant Live Nation and Ticketmaster Entertainment, the nation's largest ticketing operation, are planning to merge, The Post has learned.

According to a source familiar with the negotiations, talks between the two companies are at an advanced stage and a vote on a deal could be put to Live Nation's board as soon as Wednesday.

The source cautioned, however, that talks are at a delicate stage and could fall apart amid last-minute wrangling over finer points of a merger.

The source said the deal is currently seen as a merger of equals, with the board of the combined company totaling 14 members to accommodate equal representation from both companies.

Barry Diller, CEO of Ticketmaster parent company InterActiveCorp, will serve as chairman of the combined company, while Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino will be chief executive.

It's unclear what responsibilities Ticketmaster CEO Irving Azoff, the legendary manager of The Eagles, Guns N' Roses and other acts, will have in the new company, though it is assumed he will have some role.

Representatives for Live Nation refused to comment. Ticketmaster and Diller did not return calls and emails for comment.

The impending merger comes as Live Nation and Ticketmaster were about to go head-to-head on the ticketing front, as Live Nation spent much of last year building the infrastructure to support its own ticketing business.

That, in turn, prompted fear on Wall Street about Ticketmaster's prospects, particularly since the company has only recently been spun out of IAC as a standalone business.

Indeed, Diller brought Azoff to Ticketmaster in part because Azoff's control of artist-management firm Frontline Management would help even the playing

field against Live Nation.

While Live Nation's foray into ticketing was cheered by Wall Street, its rich deals to sign top acts like Madonna and Jay-Z were roundly criticized.

Live Nation's stock fell precipitously as a result of the bad publicity and an ugly internal power struggle between Rapino and former chairman Michael Cohl erupted into public view.

Rapino won the battle, and if he can sign the deal with Ticketmaster, he may have won the war. Without question, a combined Live Nation-Ticketmaster will be able to deal with the major record labels on its terms rather than vice versa.

LukeA · #2 02-03-2009, 10:57 PM

Can't say I'm surprised, but.. ugh.

HejiraNYC · #3 02-04-2009, 10:00 AM

Oh, hell no. Anyone on the FTC who sees this as anything other than a MONOPOLY is seriously delusional or corrupt. I can just see $50 "convenience fees" tacked onto ticket prices...

animal · #4 02-04-2009, 12:16 PM

And it just goes round & around...

Phish fans got the shaft last week...

When tickets for Phish’s reunion tour went on sale Friday, the event became the first major test for Live Nation’s new ticketing service — and according to reports across the Internet, the concert giant failed to deliver as countless fans encountered a system unready for the throng of Phishheads scrambling for tickets to one of the year’s most anticipated tours. Massive traffic to the Live Nation page caused the site to freeze up, often during purchases, resulting in users losing the tickets they were in the process of buying.

http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdail...icketing-test/

Then Bruce Springsteen Fans...

Springsteen Fans Left Out after Ticketmaster Glitch

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) -- A New Jersey congressman is demanding an investigation after Bruce Springsteen fans were unable to buy tickets from Ticketmaster's Web site -- which then promptly offered them more expensive tickets from a subsidiary it owns.

U.S. Rep. Bill Pascrell of Paterson wants the federal Trade Commission and the Justice Department to investigate possible conflicts of interest involving Ticketmaster and a ticket reseller it also owns called TicketsNow.

When tickets for Springsteen's Meadowlands show went on sale Monday, some fans got an error message on their computer screen that shut them out from buying tickets. They also saw an ad for TicketsNow, offering tickets for hundreds of dollars more than their face value.

A Ticketmaster spokesman says the system did not fail, and that only a small handful of potential purchasers had problems.

Live Nation = Evil Nation

TicketMaster = TicketB*st*rd

A merger produces Evil B*st*rd

GypsyGirl15 · #5 02-04-2009, 12:36 PM

I was so pissed off when I found I could only get my ticket from one company or brokers. Here we have several different companies providing concert tickets.

animal · #6 02-04-2009, 06:55 PM

This just got posted on Springsteen's fan site from Jon Landau after yesterday's disasterous presale for Bruce shows:

A Letter to Our Fans:

We know there was much confusion regarding Ticketmaster and TicketsNow during last Monday's on-sale dates. We were as confused as you were, as we were given no advance notice of the major changes in the Ticketmaster-TicketsNow world. (Bear in mind that we are not clients of any ticketing company, and that all those arrangements are between venues and ticketing companies.)

Last Monday, we were informed that Ticketmaster was redirecting your log-in requests for tickets at face value, to their secondary site TicketsNow, which specializes in up-selling tickets at above face value. They did this even when other seats remained available at face value. We condemn this practice.

We perceive this as a pure conflict of interest. Ticketmaster is there to ensure that we have a good, fair sale of our tickets at their face value plus normal ticketing charges. TicketsNow is supposed to be a secondary site where people who already have tickets may exchange, trade, and, unfortunately, speculate with them. We have asked this redirection from Ticketmaster to TicketsNow cease and desist immediately and Ticketmaster has agreed to do so in the future and has removed its unwanted material from their and our site.

We know the many cynical arguments some make in favor of the Ticketmaster system: There are rumors that some artists or managers participate in Ticketmaster charges--we do not. There are rumors that some artists or managers are receiving a percentage of the amount above face value at secondary outlets like TicketsNow--we do not. Some artists or managers may not perceive there to be a conflict between having the distributor of their tickets in effect "scalping" those same tickets through a secondary company like TicketsNow--we do.

While many of you have sent notes to us and your local promoters, you may also send accurate informational letters to Albert Lopez of Ticketmaster [[email protected]] and he will try to address your questions.

A final point for now: the one thing that would make the current ticket situation even worse for the fan than it is now would be Ticketmaster and Live Nation coming up with a single system, thereby returning us to a near monopoly situation in music ticketing. Several newspapers are reporting on this story right now. If you, like us, oppose that idea, you should make it known to your representatives.

The abuse of our fans and our trust by Ticketmaster has made us as furious as it has made many of you. We will continue to do our utmost now and in the future to make sure that these practices are permanently curtailed on our tours.

Bruce Springsteen, Jon Landau and the entire Springsteen Tour Team

Nicks Fan · #7 02-04-2009, 09:51 PM

Go get em Bruce!!! This is very shoddy business practices on the part of Ticketbastard.

Matt

MacMan · #8 02-04-2009, 10:18 PM

An apology from Irving Azoff, CEO, Ticketmaster Entertainment:

An Open Letter of Apology to Bruce Springsteen, Jon Landau and the entire Springsteen Tour Team:

While we were genuinely trying to do the right thing for fans in providing more choices when the tickets they requested from the primary on-sale were not available, we clearly missed the mark. Fans are confused and angry, which is the opposite of what we hoped to accomplish. We sincerely apologize to Bruce, his organization and, above all, his fans.

We recognize that we need to change our course. We have committed to Bruce and state publicly here that we have taken down all links for Bruce’s shows directing fans from Ticketmaster to TicketsNow. This redirection only occurred as a choice when we could not satisfy fans’ specific search request for primary ticket inventory, but to make sure there is no misunderstanding in the future, we also publicly state that we will never again link to TicketsNow in a manner that can possibly create any confusion during a high-demand on-sale. Specifically, we will not present an option to go to TicketsNow from Ticketmaster without the consent of the artist and the venue, both of whom work together to bring the joy of live entertainment to millions of fans.

If any fans inadvertently purchased tickets in the resale marketplace believing in error they were purchasing from the initial on-sale, we will refund the difference between the actual purchase price and the face price of the ticket. (Please don’t abuse this good faith gesture – we did not give brokers any preferential access to tickets.)

We are committed to helping deliver the most transparent and best live entertainment experience to fans. We will do better going forward.

Sincerely,

Irving Azoff, CEO, Ticketmaster Entertainment

trackaghost · #9 02-05-2009, 05:02 AM

I don't know, I think this is what ticket sales are going to be like in the future, I mean they can't argue against Bruce because he's one of the biggest concert draws right now but smaller acts won't be able to fight against Ticketmaster especially if they merge with Live Nation. Pearl Jam tried it years ago and lost.
I honestly don't remember having such trouble getting tickets as little as 10 years ago, now even shows you wouldn't expect to sell out do and it's all because of sites like eBay and Tickets Now. I realise some people here think that's all fine and dandy, the right to sell your ticket to the highest bidder and all that, but I think it's sad. Real music fans are losing out because now they can't afford tickets that, if sold at face value, they should be able to afford.

LukeA · #10 02-05-2009, 05:08 AM

If this merger goes through, I can't wait to see what AEG or Jam will do... because I can't see either of them merging with Live Nation, nor do I see either of them (ESPECIALLY Jam) readily willing to line LN/TM's pockets by selling their shows through their ticket system.

HejiraNYC · #11 02-05-2009, 10:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MacMan

An apology from Irving Azoff, CEO, Ticketmaster Entertainment:

(Please don’t abuse this good faith gesture – we did not give brokers any preferential access to tickets.)

We are committed to helping deliver the most transparent and best live entertainment experience to fans. We will do better going forward.

Sincerely,

Irving Azoff, CEO, Ticketmaster Entertainment

What a load of crap! If they did not give TicketsNow preferential access, then how could they be scalping tickets the very second tickets went on sale? There seriously needs to be an FTC investigation into this practice! It is creating an artificial scarcity in a market that is being manipulated by a monopoly. Bruce should now take this up to Capitol Hill. In an era where the music industry is dying and people are suffering, we don't need ruthless monopolies like Ticketbastard to gorge themselves on the carcasses of artists and consumers.

BTFLCHLD · #12 02-05-2009, 10:51 AM

and the Azoff open letter of apology to fans is located where?

kathy1 · #13 02-05-2009, 10:56 AM

i also think that they should charge one price for all the seats even the floor and then more people could afford to go. i don't think that they should charge different prices for different sections. i think they should check into that also. i have been saying this for along time and they still sell expensive tickets even more now with the way the economy is right now. does anyone else agree or disagree. thanks kathy

HejiraNYC · #14 02-05-2009, 11:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kathy1

i also think that they should charge one price for all the seats even the floor and then more people could afford to go. i don't think that they should charge different prices for different sections. i think they should check into that also. i have been saying this for along time and they still sell expensive tickets even more now with the way the economy is right now. does anyone else agree or disagree. thanks kathy

Well, that's how it used to be 20 years ago. While it sounds fair in theory, what often ended up happening was that the good seats would go straight to the scalpers anyway, who would then be able to get away with a huge mark-up. In recent years, I think a lot of artists/promoters started charging much higher prices for the choice seats to deter ticket scalping- they effectively started scalping their own tickets pre-emptively. Although I don't like paying a lot for concert tickets, I would rather pay big bucks to the artist rather than the scalper.

BTFLCHLD · #15 02-05-2009, 12:01 PM

I refuse to purchase tickets (with the exception of Lindsey solo) unless they are indies...

11. TICKET PRICE
The agreed ticket price will not be changed. Purchaser agrees to not lower or raise ticket price from what was agreed upon. Ticket price will remain the same to all persons, regardless of age. In the event Purchaser raises the ticket without agent’s approval, the Artist reserves the right to refrain from performing until all persons are refunded the ticket difference in cash immediately and in an orderly manner.

That last bit would go over well at an FM show...haha.