Photo Credit: Barclays Center
Testimony in the United States v. Live Nation case has put one specific allegation front and center: that Live Nation weaponized major tours dates to keep venues from switching their ticketing away from Ticketmaster.
Former BSE Global CEO John Abbamondi testified that the Barclays Center in Brooklyn was looking to switch away from Ticketmaster. In 2021, the venue chose SeatGeek as its ticketing provider due to superior technology, better financial terms, and an equity stake.
During his testimony, Abbamondi recounted a recorded 2021 call he had with Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino, who reacted angrily to the switch. Rapino warned Abbamondi that with the new UBS Arena opening in Queens, it would be “tough to deliver concerts” to Barclays if the venue moved forward with the SeatGeek contract. Abbamondi told the court he felt the exchange went sideways and that he understood the comments as a “not-so veiled” threat tying Ticketmaster’s loss to Live Nation’s touring power as the lead promoter in the United States.
Barclays Center moved forward with the SeatGeek deal in October 2021, after which Abbamondi testified that the Barclays Center saw a dramatic decline in Live Nation shows booked at the arena. He highlights a Billie Eilish tour date that was cancelled due to the pandemic in 2020, but was rescheduled for the UBS Arena after touring resumed. Abbamondi says he reached out to ask why and Live Nation cited it as the artists’ decision. But when he reached out to Billie Eilish’s managers, they told his team that the booking was “Live Nation’s decision.”
Abbamondi says he also received a warning text from Live Nation executive Patti Kim, who said he should “think about the bigger relationship with Live Nation” before making the SeatGeek transition. “I took this as a friendly warning to me that I was about to make a big mistake,” Abbamondi testified.
A Minnesota Wild hockey executive, Chief Revenue Officer Mitch Helgerson, also testified that when his Xcel Energy Center explored SeatGeek as an option, a Ticketmaster executive warned that Live Nation could move all of its shows to the rival Target Center. Helgerson described that potential loss as “almost catastrophic” to the venue. SeatGeek responded with “retaliation insurance” to backstop the loss of shows, but ultimately the Xcel Energy Center remained with Ticketmaster due to what Helgerson perceived as an “insurmountable challenge.”
These pieces of testimony are critical to the government’s case outlining Live Nation’s alleged monopolistic practices. The government’s argument alleges that Live Nation pressures venues to sign exclusive deals with Ticketmaster or lose access to lucrative major tours like those Billie Eilish dates.
Live Nation denies that it operates as a monopoly or that it threatens artists or venues in this capacity. In an attempt to undermine the witness testimony, Live Nation’s lawyers questioned Mr. Abbamondi about his ties to SeatGeek. He confirmed that he had personal relationships with top SeatGeek executives and that he negotiated a deal in which BSE Global (Barclays parent) would be granted an ownership stake in SeatGeek.
