- News
AIF Urges CMA Investigation into Live Nation’s Market Share
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By Ryan Moss
- 08 Jul 2025
- 3 min read
The Association of Independent Festivals (AIF) has formally called on the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to investigate Live Nation, citing concerns over potential anti-competitive behaviour in the live music sector.
The move follows AIF’s submission of evidence to the Business and Trade Committee as part of an inquiry into ticket pricing, competition, and consumer protection. According to data shared by the organisation, Live Nation and its affiliated companies control over 66% of tickets for major UK shows in 2025.
Of the 23.1 million tickets currently on sale for arena, stadium, and large-scale outdoor concerts next year, Live Nation directly controls 58.36%, rising to 66.4% when counting events run by subsidiaries such as Cuffe & Taylor, DF Concerts, and Metropolis. By comparison, the legal threshold for monopoly power in the UK is 25%.
AIF CEO John Rostron said the findings point to a serious imbalance: “Based on our analysis, we believe that there is evidence to suggest that Live Nation could be held responsible for engaging in anti-competitive behaviour and we therefore recommend that the Competition and Markets Authority investigate matters.”
He added: “While we encourage and support organisations and individuals putting on the biggest shows, we wish for the market to be fair where all participants – whether major companies or independents – have opportunities at all levels. That’s why we took this action.”
Phil Bowdery, Executive President of Touring International Music at Live Nation, and Andrew Parsons, Managing Director of Ticketmaster (a Live Nation company), appeared before the Committee on Tuesday 24th June to respond to the data. The figures were presented during the session, and both the video and transcript are now available online.
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