Friday, January 06, 2023

Them crooked vultures

How did Ticketmaster become so dominant - for some, "an all-powerful gatekeeper" maintaining "a very literal stranglehold over live music events"? In an article for website The American Prospect, Maureen Tkacik and Krista Brown carefully explain, alleging aggressive lobbying, acquisitions and legal action plus underhand strong-arm tactics, secretive collusion and political corruption. Cumulatively, it's eye-opening stuff.

Here's hoping - as Tkacik and Brown suggest - that the tide is indeed turning, as "regulators are determined to fully enforce antitrust laws, and public tolerance of monopolistic abuses is increasingly waning".

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