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Live Nation ticketing employees called its customers “so stupid” and discussed “robbing them blind” on parking in internal messages, according to newly released court filings.
The Slack message exchanges, from 2022, were released on March 11 as part of the Department of Justice’s lawsuit against the live entertainment giant.
Arun Subramanian, the federal judge overseeing the case in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, ordered Live Nation to unseal the messages in response to a request from media outlets The New York Times, Bloomberg and MLex.
It came days after Live Nation and the Justice Department settled the case. The lawsuit accused the entertainment giant of operating an illegal monopoly over the industry.
In a statement, Live Nation said, “The Slack exchange from one junior staffer to a friend absolutely does not reflect our values or how we operate.”
“Because this was a private Slack message, leadership learned of this when the public did, and will be looking into the matter promptly,” the statement said.
‘These people are so stupid,’ Live Nation employee wrote in messages
The newly released Slack messages show exchanges between Live Nation employees Ben Baker and Jeff Weinhold, who were at the time regional directors of ticketing for venues in Florida and Virginia, respectively, according to court filings.
In the messages, Baker and Weinhold discuss, in part, prices for non-ticket items like VIP club access and premier parking.
In an exchange from 2022 about a Kid Rock concert, Weinhold wrote that he listed VIP parking for $250 and club access for $125.
Baker wrote, “These people are so stupid,” then added, “I almost feel bad taking advantage of them.”
They discussed parking rates in another later exchange, during which Baker wrote, “robbing them blind baby.”
Copies of the messages were initially sealed as part of the court proceedings.
In a filing opposing the release of the messages, Live Nation described them as “candid, informal Slack messages between two personal friends.”
“They reflect off-the-cuff banter, not policy, decision-making, or facts of consequence to Plaintiffs’ antitrust claims,” the filing said.
Alternatively, the Justice Department argued that the messages between Baker and Weinhold “provide a candid, contemporaneous look into how they view the prices that Live Nation charges fans for ancillary services at their respective venues.”
Messages released days after Live Nation, DOJ settlement
The messages were released on March 11, days after the Justice Department and Live Nation agreed to a settlement in the case, and a week after the trial began. The settlement has left the status of the trial unknown.
As part of the deal, Live Nation agreed to divest from up to 13 of its amphitheaters nationwide and to enforce a 15% cap on service fees for people who use the venues, the company said.
Ticketmaster, a subsidiary of Live Nation, is also required to offer its technology to other ticket sellers, such as StubHub, to reach customers, according to the agreement.
New York Attorney General Letitia James has announced that her state, one of more than two dozen also part of the lawsuit, will not agree to the DOJ’s settlement and instead continue legal action against Live Nation.
Contributing: Taijuan Moorman and Aysha Bagchi, USA TODAY
Melina Khan is a national trending reporter for USA TODAY. She can be reached at [email protected].
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Live Nation employees mock fans in messages. ‘Robbing them blind.’
Reporting by Melina Khan, USA TODAY / USA TODAY
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
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