antitrust Archives - Wakeman Consulting Group

RE: $414 Million Saved is Only Half the Story

August 12, 2026
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In the joy of completing my math project, I forgot to mention two important things…to me, at least. First, in July, Pearl Jam made a grant in my honor to support youth soccer in the DC area. Pretty sweet. Another cool thing. Friend of the newsletter, podcast, and all of my assorted adventures, Tim Chambers, […]

August 11, 2026
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The secondary market has been in the news a lot lately…a lot. The D.C. RESALE ACT just passed. StubHub is facing a lawsuit over illegal practices. The Savannah Bananas kept resale in-house. They saved their fans $13.69M. No fraud. No black-market boogie man. Just real relationships with fans…sustained and deepened. StubHub’s CEO is under investigation […]

Now What? A Jury Found Live Nation Guilty…A Competitor’s Playbook

A New York jury put a label on something Live Nation likes to deny. They are a monopoly. You already knew that. We wait for the remedy to see how much this verdict changes the live entertainment business. But right now is an opportunity. If you are willing to take it. The verdict put a […]

John Breyault thinks that monopolies are gonna monopoly…I agree.

My guest today is John Breyault. John is with the National Consumers League. His work is on consumer protection. This made a conversation about the Live Nation trial timely. We cover a lot of ground about Live Nation and tickets including: And, more! I’ve written too many words about this case, but if you haven’t […]

Why I Keep Writing About Live Nation

What Talking Tickets is about for readers, old and new. Why Live Nation? Why Now? I’ve been writing a lot about Live Nation over the last few days. The trial. The secret settlement. The unsealed documents. The David Marcus reply on LinkedIn. It’s a lot. Especially since I don’t really ever write about or think […]

David Marcus Replied. Now I Have Receipts.

Does David Marcus Still Think There’s No Evidence of Predatory Behavior? David Marcus was certain. In response to my post on the state of the live entertainment business, he took offense to me saying that Live Nation had won, but everyone else had lost. He replied to Charles Kaufman’s comment on LinkedIn to call me […]

The Fix Was Always In

Dan Wall stood in a Manhattan courthouse on Tuesday and said there’s “zero chance” the states will settle. Judge Subramanian shot back: “Not with that attitude.” (I like judges with the same dismissive attitude towards nonsense that I have.) 25 states are still fighting. They know this settlement is a bad deal. It doesn’t stop […]