Antitrust Officials Question Ticket Merger

Ticketmaster Entertainment Inc. and Live Nation Inc.’s plans to merge have come under fire from antitrust enforcement officials that have expressed their concern over the deal. According to several of these officials, such a deal could end up reducing competition for the sale of tickets to events like concerts.

A person familiar with the situation has stated that the Justice Department will decide within two months whether or not the two companies will be allowed to merge. If the deal goes through, the largest ticketing company and venue operator will combine to form a company that has $6 billion in annual sales.

Investor concern that the deal may end up dissolving due to federal intervention has sent the shares of both companies down. However, several analysts have stated that investors may be acting prematurely and that there is still plenty of time for the situation to evolve and go either way.

Ticketmaster (Image: Flickr)