Live music industry news

Bad forecasting and the loss of two clients contributed to tickets.ie collapse, says director report

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Tickets.ie • 3 min read

Bad forecasting and the loss of two clients contributed to tickets.ie collapse, says director report

Directors of Irish ticketing company tickets.ie, which collapsed last month, have said that the loss of two key clients and bad forecasting caused insurmountable cash flow problems. The company’s founder, who left the business last year, also says he was “saddened and shocked” by the sudden collapse…

Chris Cooke • 07 Jul 2026

US Department Of Justice defends its Live Nation settlement, which delivers “real reform today” rather than “waiting years” for “judicial resolution”

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Live Nation • 3 min read

US Department Of Justice defends its Live Nation settlement, which delivers “real reform today” rather than “waiting years” for “judicial resolution”

The deal agreed between the US Department Of Justice and Live Nation earlier this year, settling the DoJ’s antitrust lawsuit against the live music company, has been heavily criticised. But in new court papers the DoJ defends the deal, saying it will deliver solid live sector reforms much quicker…

Chris Cooke • 01 Jul 2026

Live Nation wants to push embarrassing legal spat with former employee into private arbitration

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Live Nation • 3 min read

Live Nation wants to push embarrassing legal spat with former employee into private arbitration

Live Nation has formally responded to the lawsuit filed a former employee who accuses the company of “financial misrepresentation and misleading disclosures”. It says those claims are without merit, but wants this dispute forced to private arbitration, keen to avoid the PR damage of a court case…

Chris Cooke • 29 Jun 2026

As South Korea’s August ticket touting crackdown looms, government reports fifteen touts to the police

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Secondary Ticketing • 1 min read

As South Korea’s August ticket touting crackdown looms, government reports fifteen touts to the police

Ticket touting regulations in South Korea are due to be ramped up this August. But before that even happens, the government has reported fifteen touts to the police, because the quantity of tickets they are selling suggests they have been illegally employing bots to source their tickets…

Chris Cooke • 25 Jun 2026

Live Nation boss Michael Rapino talked to Trump, hired Trump allies, reveals latest filing in antitrust case

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Live Nation • 2 min read

Live Nation boss Michael Rapino talked to Trump, hired Trump allies, reveals latest filing in antitrust case

Live Nation has filed a summary of its communications with the US government when it was trying to get the DoJ to settle its antitrust lawsuit, including a conversation between CEO Michael Rapino and Donald Trump. The settlement is controversial, which means this filing will get extra scrutiny…

Chris Cooke • 24 Jun 2026

Live industry and consumer rights groups call on EU to ban dynamic pricing for events

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Dynamic pricing • 3 min read

Live industry and consumer rights groups call on EU to ban dynamic pricing for events

The European Commission is currently drafting a new EU Digital Fairness Act, and live music and consumer rights groups reckon it should include a ban of dynamic pricing for live events. They say dynamic pricing in ticketing means “consumers increasingly face unpredictable price increases”…

Chris Cooke • 24 Jun 2026

StubHub fined £900,000 by UK regulator for illegal drip pricing

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StubHub • 3 min read

StubHub fined £900,000 by UK regulator for illegal drip pricing

StubHub in the UK has been fined £900,000 for illegally employing drip pricing, where mandatory booking fees are not declared upfront and are only revealed at the end of the ticket-buying process. The secondary ticketing company insists that the drip pricing occurred because of an error on its site…

Chris Cooke • 23 Jun 2026

UK government should prioritise tackling post-Brexit touring issues at next EU summit, MPs tell ministers

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CMS Select Committee • 3 min read

UK government should prioritise tackling post-Brexit touring issues at next EU summit, MPs tell ministers

Parliament’s culture select committee has urged the UK government to put post-Brexit touring issues high on the agenda at its next EU Summit, which could be next month. It should also provide more support for artists and performers who are currently navigating all those issues, MPs add…

Chris Cooke • 16 Jun 2026

New ticketing regulations needed, Irish politicians say, following collapse of DEAG’s tickets.ie

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ticket.ie • 3 min read

New ticketing regulations needed, Irish politicians say, following collapse of DEAG’s tickets.ie

The collapse of Irish ticketing platform tickets.ie - and its impact on festivals that are owed hundreds of thousands of euro - was discussed in the Irish parliament this week, with politicians insisting new laws are needed to protect promoters and ticket buyers when ticketing companies go bust…

Chris Cooke • 12 Jun 2026

Independent venues urge US attorneys general to crack down on fake artist websites run by ticket touts

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National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) • 2 min read

Independent venues urge US attorneys general to crack down on fake artist websites run by ticket touts

US venue organisation NIVA has found thousands of misleading websites and URLS which are used by touts to trick consumers into thinking they are buying tickets from official sellers rather than unofficial resellers. NIVA wants state-level officials in the US to crackdown on these deceptive practices…

Chris Cooke • 09 Jun 2026

Directors of DEAG subsidiary tickets.ie will appoint liquidators

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Tickets.ie • 2 min read

Directors of DEAG subsidiary tickets.ie will appoint liquidators

Irish ticketing platform Tickets.ie is calling in the liquidators. DEAG became a majority shareholder in the company in 2022 after the ticket seller restructured to meet financial challenges caused by the COVID shutdown. It’s not clear how many promoters will be impacted by the company’s collapse…

Kaya Robertson • 04 Jun 2026

First Scottish edition of WOMAD cancelled due to low ticket sales

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WOMAD • 1 min read

First Scottish edition of WOMAD cancelled due to low ticket sales

The first ever Scottish edition of WOMAD was due to take place in Glasgow next month via a partnership with Celtic Connections and Glasgow Life. However, organisers have cancelled the event because ticket sales “did not reach the level required” to “deliver” the festival “in its inaugural year”…

Chris Cooke • 03 Jun 2026

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