By James Fanelli and Dave Michaels
Live Nation Chief Executive Michael Rapino was grilled Thursday at the concert promoter's monopolization trial, as he sought to defend the company's ticket fees and past boasts about its dominant market share and profitability.
At one point during questioning, Rapino was confronted with a message in which he allegedly told a frustrated booking agent that fees were "too high."
A lawyer for a coalition of more than 20 states, which are suing the company for stifling competition, hammered Rapino for previously bragging that his business was "recession proof" and that he had "built an incredible moat around the castle of Live Nation."
"What is the moat?" the lawyer, Jeffrey Kessler, asked.
Rapino played down the comment, testifying that he meant Live Nation, which owns Ticketmaster, successfully took a fragmented industry and "put the pieces together to make it a global, attractive business for artists."
The lawyer didn't buy the answer, charging that the moat was Live Nation's alleged practice of threatening venues into using Ticketmaster to secure the best concerts. "That's the moat; that's the protection you have," the lawyer said.
The Justice Department settled with Live Nation last week, dropping out of the antitrust case. A bipartisan coalition of states including New York, California and Tennessee have continued to litigate, with a goal of securing a court-ordered breakup of the company. A smaller group of states joined the Justice Department in settling.
The still-suing states say Live Nation and Ticketmaster's 2010 merger formed an entertainment colossus that illegally dominates the market for major concerts, harming artists, fans and venues. Live Nation says it isn't a monopolist and the market is more competitive than the states allege.
During more than five hours of questioning in a New York federal court, Kessler pressed Rapino with past statements he made in depositions or on investor calls. In one exchange, Kessler reminded Rapino that he had crowed during a 2011 call that Live Nation was bigger than all the promoters in the world combined.
Rapino helped build Live Nation from its inception in 2005 into the world's biggest concert promoter through a series of acquisitions. The states allege the company has threatened big venues that don't use Ticketmaster by saying it would withhold concerts from them.
The CEO testified that he had previously said concert tickets had been historically undervalued. He told Kessler that he meant many tickets were being resold on secondary markets for higher prices. "The word you are missing is scalper," Rapino said.
Increased service and venue fees have also led to the rising cost of ticket prices, Kessler said. Rapino admitted that he has heard complaints about the fees from music fans, as well as artists including The Cure frontman Robert Smith. Rapino was also asked about a complaint that he received from a booking agent for the rock group Alabama Shakes.
"In response you wrote, 'Our fees are too high. We can't defend them,'" Kessler said. Rapino said he didn't recall making the comment.
Kessler also quizzed Rapino about the rising cost of parking and beverages at Live Nation-owned venues. The venues raked in more money when they began banning concertgoers from bringing their own lawn chairs to its amphitheaters. Fans instead had to rent chairs from the venue, in some cases paying $15 a pop.
"People were bringing all different sizes of chairs," Rapino told the jury, defending the policy. "It was a safety hazard for sure."
Write to James Fanelli at james.fanelli@wsj.com and Dave Michaels at dave.michaels@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
March 19, 2026 17:28 ET (21:28 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2026 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
