BizJournals Portfolio
Home >   Business Views, Opinions and Blogs >   Business Blogs >   Market Movers >  

Ticketmaster Live Nation Mission Improbable

Market Movers

by Felix Salmon
Main
Markopolos vs the SEC   Banker Pay: Salmon vs Barnett

Recent Blog Posts

Links

Feb 04 2009 12:25pm EDT

Ticketmaster-Live Nation: Mission Improbable

One congressman is already calling for an antitrust investigation of Ticketmaster -- and that's before any merger with Live Nation is even announced. If the Obama administration wants to demonstrate clearly to corporate America that the laissez-faire attitude of its predessor is a thing of the past, it should look very long and very hard at this deal. Ticketmaster is already a monopoly; if it merges with Live Nation, its market power would be pretty much unassailable.

Besides, there's a huge amount of political capital in attacking Ticketmaster, which is one of the most-hated companies in America. Ticketmaster might be in talks with Live Nation, but my guess is that the chances of a merger actually going through are slim.

. □

Comments

If you are commenting using a Facebook account, your profile information may be displayed with your comment depending on your privacy settings. By leaving the 'Post to Facebook' box selected, your comment will be published to your Facebook profile in addition to the space below.


Connect With Portfolio.com
Like Portfolio on Facebook

Come on, like us—you know you want to.

Follow Portfolio on Twitter

Follow us and if you're an innovative entrepreneur, we'll return the favor.

The Mix

Today's top stories, conversation starters, and the back nine business bites.

spotlight on

Slideshows

500 Startups Hits New York

Dave McClure's brainchild makes its way to New York and introduces East Coast money folks to some intriguing new companies. View Slideshow