Despite recent rumours that Live Nation rivals AEG might be quietly smiling on their competitor's proposed merger with Ticketmaster, in the hope competition regulators may force Live Nation to sell some of its most prestigious venues in order to win their approval, the boss of the live music major was once again critical of the proposed deal, telling a Billboard conference in New York yesterday that the merger was "not good for the industry".
According to the trade magazine, AEG top man Tim Leiweke said "I find it ironic that some think this merger will fix the business", adding that combining Live Nation and Ticketmaster would not lead to cheaper ticket prices for consumers, if anything he reckons the opposite will be true. "This merger won't create a new idea on how to sell more tickets" he told the conference, "it's all about the bottom line".
Concluding he said: "I trust to do the right thing, we can't have one entity dominating the live music business".
As previously reported, some have questioned why AEG, while publicly opposing the merger, haven't been more proactive in voicing their opposition at US Congress hearings discussing the proposals, with some wondering if some at the live music firm quietly hope the deal will go through, but with Live Nation being forced to part with some of its venue network - providing possible valuable new property acquisitions for AEG.