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The U.S. Department of Justice said Monday that Endeavor chief executive Ari Emanuel and entertainment group chairman Mark Shapiro had resigned from the Live Nation board after expressing concern over the overlap of the two companies.
The justice department, which has intensified its antitrust control under the Biden administration, dit on Monday, Endeavor and Live Nation competed closely in the sports and entertainment markets. Both companies sell tickets and do not meet the requirements for certain antitrust ports.
“These waivers ensure that Endeavor and Live Nation will compete independently,” said Richard Powers, the justice department’s deputy attorney general in antitrust duties.
“Executives are not allowed to hold management positions in companies that compete with each other. The division will enforce antitrust laws to make sure all companies compete for the fund. ”
June 3, Live Nation dit Emanuel resigned from his board, but gave no indication of any pressure from the justice department. Shapiro was re-elected to the board earlier this month and was still listed as a member of Live Nation website from Monday.
Live Nation, an event promoter that owns the Ticketmaster platform, declined to comment. Endeavor said: “While there has been no violation of the law, we understand and respect the DOJ’s concerns about the current similarities of our businesses.”
Effort was made public in April. The company was founded by Emanuel in 1995 as a talent agency and acquired its rival William Morris Agency. But it has become a full-fledged sports and entertainment company, with the purchase of the Ultimate Wrestling Championship and the Miss Universe beauty pageant, alongside other companies.
Live Nation, which fought during the pandemic, settled with the justice department in 2019 for antitrust issues. The DoJ had been investigating Live Nation amid concerns it had tried to pressure concert venues to use their Ticketmaster sites on other ticketing platforms.
The Biden administration has noted that it will take a tougher approach to enforcing antitrust law.
Biden played Lina Khan, 32, a critic of big tech companies, at the head of the Federal Trade Commission. Tim Wu, a prominent critic of Big Tech groups, unit the White House in March as an adviser on competition policy, a move that indicated in Silicon Valley that Biden hoped to domesticate America’s most valuable businesses.
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