DoJ Seeking Concessions From LN/TM

WASHINGTON, D.C. (CelebrityAccess MediaWire) — After a week of conflicting stories about the readiness of The U.S. Justice Department to approve the Live Nation/Ticketmaster merger, the federal regulator appears to be waiting for the two companies to offer further concessions before giving the proposed deal a stamp of approval.

Ticketmaster and Live Nation are hoping to complete the merger on by February 10th and while anti-trust regulators in the UK have signed off on the deal, a decision from DoJ isn't expected before January 8th at the earliest.

Justice Department sources close to the matter told Bloomberg that the negotiations haven't exactly been smooth sailing and talks between LN/TM and Justice nearly broke down at one point. Persons familiar with the discussions noted to Bloomberg that the two companies have yet to allay DoJ concerns that the proposed merger would negatively impact competition in the live entertainment sector.

Among the possible concessions being considered were licensing their ticketing software to competing promoters such as AEG Live. Other possibilities include the sale of ticketing contracts to Global Spectrum, Bloomberg said.

Live Nation and Ticketmaster are also reportedly readying their legal teams in the event that the matter goes to court. – CelebrityAccess Staff Writers