NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) - Tennessee is one of 30 states that joined the Department of Justice (DOJ) in suing Ticketmaster and their parent company, Live Nation.
The lawsuit accuses them of holding live music hostage as a monopoly and breaking anti-trust laws.
Beyonce's Renaissance World Tour and Taylor Swift's The Eras Tour had fans in a whirlwind. Some fans told News 2 they either paid excessive prices or dealt with ongoing technical issues. Those issues left many fans and even state attorney generals questioning business practices of large ticket marketplaces, like Ticketmaster and Live Nation.
"There's a lot of people that would love to take that market share, but they don't have the resources like a huge company like Live Nation," Music Industry veteran Dan Dugan said.
Dugan has spent 20 years in the music industry and agrees with the Department of Justice's view on Live Nation's alleged power hold on live music. He stressed that he is not against Ticketmaster or Live Nation, but said changes need to be made.
Tennessee legislators have continued to look at junk fees that are added to every ticket and led to heartache for some buyers. Dugan told News 2 Live Nation takes out fees for every ticket sold, so by the time an artist receives their cut, it's dwindled down.
"I would love to see Live Nation and their managing their venues and the ticketing services be completely separate," Dugan said.
Live Nation released a statement on the DOJ's lawsuit, which reads in part, "This lawsuit against Live Nation and Ticketmaster won't reduce ticket prices or service fees. Net profits show Live nation and Ticketmaster do not wield monopoly power."
They also say Ticketmaster's market share has declined since 2010 and the lawsuit distracts from real solutions that would decrease prices and protect fans, like letting artists cap resale prices.