Written submission from Anonymous (LMI0034)

Live Nation has the lion's share of the market. They have pushed out smaller independent festivals and therefore smaller companies out of the industry by using the mammoth market forces.

If artists are owned by giant companies (Live Nation)  who then determine where they can perform (at their venues) and their tickets are sold by their company (Ticketmaster) they effectively push out everyone else or create expensive deals which are a big risk for the independent festival/ promoter.

The relationship between promoters and venues is very important. Venues like to work with trusted promoters who they know will not only bring good artists who sell tickets but are also good to work with.

There needs to be trust between promoters and venues - for instance operationally if a showstop is required the venue should be assured that the promoter will comply with the safety systems and will appropriately brief the artist.  Live Nation Worldwide has been linked to at least 200 deaths and over 750 injuries at its events in seven countries since 2006 and yet Live Nation staff repeatedly are not aware of their showstop procedure and have very little concern for the safety of the audience.

My primary experience is in festivals where we have seen the huge loss of independent festivals - 36 in 2023, 78 in 2024 - and yet Live Nation events continue to grow. This isn't due to market saturation but because LI is pricing all the others out of the market.

The barriers are huge. The cost of setting up a festival runs to hundreds of thousands - most independent festival organisers remortgage their house to pay for the first few years in the hope that it will come off and then are dependent on competitive prices from suppliers and sustained ticket sales - all of which are undermined by Live Nations market share.

Live Nation have huge purchasing power which means that they do deals with larger companies to provide all their equipment and staffing at lower rates.

Independent festivals/ promoters cannot operate on this scale and so have to pay higher rates for equipment - this pushes prices up. Independent festivals would have to pass this cost onto consumers which would then increase the ticket price and then drives the consumer to the Live Nation events as they feel they are getting ‘better value’ for money.

Live Nation can also arrange better sponsorship deals as they can agree on a multi event level. This reduces the opportunities for independent promoters.

In addition there are serious concerns in the industry about the amount Live Nation pay their staff/ contractors. I know personally of two independent contractors who closed at the end of last year as they were committed to paying their employees the living wage and they are unable to compete for tenders and pay their staff fairly.

Staff are paid ‘day rates’ between £150 - 250 a day for 12+ hours shifts - this equates to £12.50- £20.80 an hour, which when you take into account tax/ NI etc is less than minimum wage. £250 is offered for competent experienced freelance professionals with decades of experience and training - well below what is deemed industry standard.

Events where security companies are stripped back to the bare essentials and have to pay for staff welfare out of their own pocket essentially operating at a loss (and those are the good companies) the bad ones just make the security staff look after themselves which leads to back handers and security letting people in for cash.

By driving these costs down to increase their profits they damage the long term viability of the industry. Young people are not attracted to an industry where you are expected to work long hours on below minimum wage.

At present nothing is being done to stop the hold of Live Nation. If this is allowed to continue unchecked you will have a broken live events industry - there purely to satisfy the needs of the shareholders with no regard for the safety and wellbeing of the staff, contractors or consumers.