Kid Rock vs. Ticketmaster: The Unlikely Crusader Takes on the Live Entertainment Giant
Kid Rock, the outspoken musician, has become an unexpected champion in the fight against Live Nation and Ticketmaster's alleged monopolistic practices, testifying before a Senate committee about the need for fair ticket pricing.
Kid Rock is perhaps the last musical artist one might expect to lead the charge against corporate behemoths, but here we are. The man otherwise known as Bob Ritchie has been a vocal supporter of the Federal Trade Commission's lawsuit against Live Nation and Ticketmaster, accusing them of colluding with scalpers to inflate aftermarket ticket prices. He even visited the Oval Office with Donald Trump when the former president directed the FTC to investigate. Last October, he publicly urged Pearl Jam, who famously battled Ticketmaster in the '90s, to support the FTC's case.
This past Wednesday, Mr. Ritchie continued his crusade, testifying before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation at a hearing titled "Fees Rolled on All Summer Long: Examining the Live Entertainment Industry." Speaking to the subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Technology, and Data Privacy, the rap-rocker-turned-country-singer stated that Live Nation and Ticketmaster "fooled" the government into approving their 2010 merger, according to Billboard.
Dan Wall, Live Nation's VP for legal affairs, also testified, denying the existence of a monopoly and claiming the FTC overstated their market share. He asserted that the company "consistently stands with artists, with venues and with fans and in opposition to ticket brokers and other resale marketplaces," highlighting Ticketmaster's ban on brokers operating multiple accounts after the FTC lawsuit. He also stated that their "bot defenses are second to none in the world."
Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-TN, challenged Wall's statements, expressing disappointment with the FTC's report, which included an internal email where a Ticketmaster employee admitted to "turn(ing) a blind eye" to bots and scalpers "as a matter of policy." Blackburn questioned why such a policy would exist if no wrongdoing was occurring. Wall responded that the line was taken out of context.
In his opening statement, Rock told the subcommittee, "Independent venues have been crushed. Artists have lost leverage. Fans are paying more than ever and getting blamed for it. This wasn't an experiment — it was a monopoly dressed up as innovation." He described the Live Nation/Ticketmaster arrangement as a "cartel" and suggested a 10% limit on resale ticket pricing to truly solve the problem, even if the companies were broken up. "I'm a capitalist, I’m a deregulation guy," he said, "but there’s no other way around this but to put a price cap on this."
Related Articles
- Live Band Trademark Dispute: Guitarist and Drummer Unite Against Frontman Ed Kowalczyk
- Live Nation Scrubs Blog Post Defending Ticketmaster Amid DOJ Antitrust Battle
- Virgin Music Group Appoints Pieter van Rijn as COO After Downtown Music Acquisition
Related Articles
Listen to Kid Rock on Foxsoundi. Click here to listen!
Comments (0)
Login to comment