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Future of Music Coalition @futureofmusic.bsky.social · 1d

Compared to the DOJ and FTC cases, the class actions may face an uphill battle; some of the assertions made in both complaints seem rather questionable to people who work in the live events industry, including people who've been very critical of Live Nation.

Future of Music Coalition @futureofmusic.bsky.social · 1d

The two big class actions are the Heckman v. LiveNation case (which SCOTUS just ruled could proceed) and the "Swiftie case" (which was dismissed but a judge is allowing the plaintiffs one more shot at amending their claims) www.courthousenews.com/swifties-cla...

Swifties stumble against Ticketmaster at first hurdle

Although the claims by 355 Taylor Swift fans were dismissed, a federal judge allowed them one

www.courthousenews.com

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Future of Music Coalition @futureofmusic.bsky.social · 1d

The FTC case focuses on Ticketmaster's deceptive fees and collusion with predatory resellers; it could result in massive fines. arstechnica.com/tech-policy/...

“Yikes”: Internal emails reveal Ticketmaster helped scalpers jack up prices, FTC says

FTC sued Ticketmaster and Live Nation for turning “blind eye” to scalpers.

arstechnica.com

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Future of Music Coalition @futureofmusic.bsky.social · 1d

The DOJ case is the case likely to result in a breakup of Ticketmaster/LiveNation. That's expected to go to trial in March. It's a very strong case. www.rollingstone.com/music/music-...

'It Is Time to Break It Up': Inside the DOJ's Blockbuster Lawsuit Against Live Nation

An inside look at the landmark DOJ lawsuit against Live Nation. The Justice Department has accused Live Nation-Ticketmaster of being a monopoly.

www.rollingstone.com

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Reposted by Future of Music Coalition

Jennifer Waits @spinningindie.bsky.social · 3d

Especially in light of the shutdown of @wcsb.bsky.social yesterday, it's important to know that college radio IS thriving and plays a vital role in many students' lives. Thanks to @emwhitenoise.bsky.social for this great piece that takes a closer look at why Gen Z is excited about college radio.

Emily White @emwhitenoise.bsky.social · 6d

College radio stations are seeing a surge in student interest.

Stations that once struggled to fill airtime are now overflowing with student DJs.

I spoke to 7 college radio stations across the U.S. to understand what is driving the revival:

emwhitenoise.substack.com/p/gen-zs-col...

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Future of Music Coalition @futureofmusic.bsky.social · 1d

Live Nation news: in addition to the DOJ antitrust case and the FTC consumer protection lawsuit, there are a couple of pending class action suits. LNE tried to dismiss one of these by saying its arbitration provisions preclude class action, but SCOTUS said no. www.courthousenews.com/live-nation-...

Live Nation loses SCOTUS appeal, forcing ticket seller to face antitrust suit

A lower court found that Live Nation and Ticketmaster's switch to a different arbitration scheme without clearly informing their customers “boggles the mind.”

www.courthousenews.com

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Future of Music Coalition @futureofmusic.bsky.social · 1d

So sorry for your loss, Sam. What an incredible legacy of patient work and connection. Immeasurable impact.

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Future of Music Coalition @futureofmusic.bsky.social · 2d

Always worth considering this guy’s insights 👇

the Mountain Goats @themountaingoats.bsky.social · 2d

the thing about social media is that like a lot of successful technological developments it sort of disseminates its own myth -- these myths are I think always (avoid saying "always" without numbers to back it up tho) progress fables rich with notions of inevitability

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Future of Music Coalition @futureofmusic.bsky.social · 2d

Our friends at NIVA are hosting a policy summit in Indianapolis! Join us there to meet with some of the folks who’ve been fighting Live Nation for years. www.nivassoc.org/live-summit

NIVA Live Policy Summit | October 15-16, 2025 — National Independent Venue Association

Join the National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) at the NIVA Live Policy Summit presented by Tixel on October 15–16, 2025, at HI-FI Indy in Indianapolis, IN. The summit will bring together indus...

www.nivassoc.org

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Future of Music Coalition @futureofmusic.bsky.social · 2d

The recent victory that Portland, Maine activists won against LiveNation is huge—but not without precedent, as it follows the Chicago Independent Venue League’s successful fight. Understanding this history is important, because there’s so much that can be learned. pitchfork.com/news/chicago...

Chicago Indie Clubs Band Together to Fight New Live Nation Venues

Empty Bottle, Metro, Schubas, the Hideout, and more team up to delay the $5 billion Lincoln Yards development

pitchfork.com

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Reposted by Future of Music Coalition

WUNC News @wunc.org · 2d

For the past 17 years Kym Register has owned The Pinhook, one of Durham's most esteemed clubs. WUNC music reporter @brianburns.bsky.social recently sat down with Register to talk about the history of the club and what came before it.

www.wunc.org/wunc-music/2...

Kym Register and the legacy of The Pinhook

For the past 17 years Kym Register has owned The Pinhook, one of Durham's most esteemed clubs.

www.wunc.org

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Future of Music Coalition @futureofmusic.bsky.social · 7d

We agree with Lina Khan, who suggested that unlicensed AI training on music that then is used to compete with the original music likely qualifies as an unfair method of competition under the FTC Act.

Rolling Stone @rollingstone.com · 7d

“It’s shocking, it’s disheartening, it’s insulting."

A Welsh Band Spent a Decade Building a Fanbase -- An AI Imitator Outpaced Them in Two Months

AI band Bleeding Verse cite Holding Absence as an influence — and they have more monthly listeners on Spotify than the human band.

www.rollingstone.com

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Future of Music Coalition @futureofmusic.bsky.social · 8d

Perhaps Ek’s become a liability for the company in light of his complete inability to read the room when addressing artist frustrations and his investment portfolio. But nothing indicates meaningful moves toward accountability or responsibility toward artists.

The Quietus @thequietus.com · 8d

#Spotify CEO Daniel Ek is standing down from his position to take up a new role as executive chair of the streaming company. Controversially, Ek is also the founder of the investment fund Prima Materia

buff.ly/TjTIN2m

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Future of Music Coalition @futureofmusic.bsky.social · 9d

You can probably get your official content down, but what about the UGC uploads? To get that down you need access to YouTube's Content ID program. And we've seen people told that they don't qualify for Content ID unless they make their work available via official uploads. 🙃

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Future of Music Coalition @futureofmusic.bsky.social · 9d

We're unlikely to see much of an exodus from YouTube even among the part of the artist community that finds this deeply problematic on free speech grounds. That's because YouTube makes it deeply difficult to get your music off the platform; it's much more challenging than with Spotify.

Yashar Ali 🐘 @yasharali.bsky.social · 9d

BREAKING

YouTube has agreed to pay $24.5 million to settle the lawsuit brought by President Trump against the company for suspending his account.

Most of the funds will go towards the fund the president setup for the White House ballroom.

Full Story: on.wsj.com/46IT4P1

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Future of Music Coalition @futureofmusic.bsky.social · 9d

And also addressed federally by the proposed NO FAKES act. Beyond that, how is someone supposed to do crowd work from behind the drum kit?

Future of Music Coalition @futureofmusic.bsky.social · 9d

This is awful and also illegal under even existing personality rights law in many states!

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Future of Music Coalition @futureofmusic.bsky.social · 9d

Here’s the Heritage Foundation saying price caps on ticket resale are bad. Actually, though, price caps on resale are good. townhall.com/columnists/t...

After Getting Sued by Trump’s FTC, Ticketmaster Wants the President to Expand Its Monopoly

Ticketmaster faces FTC lawsuit amid concerns of monopolistic practices and ticketing fairness.

townhall.com

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Future of Music Coalition @futureofmusic.bsky.social · 9d

The Protect Working Musicians act introduced by Deborah Ross is aimed at fixing this leverage disparity.

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Future of Music Coalition @futureofmusic.bsky.social · 9d

@ednewtonrex.bsky.social argues Spotify is completely unserious about combating AI music. The policy challenge is that independent creators lack a seat at the negotiating table (but distributors who profit from AI slop do have a seat.) fairtraining.substack.com/p/spotify-is...

Spotify is completely unserious about combating AI music

Their new policies on AI music do little to protect musicians.

fairtraining.substack.com

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Future of Music Coalition @futureofmusic.bsky.social · 11d

It’s also not uncommon for artists with sufficient leverage to book multiple nights tentatively, announce one and put that one on sale and add additional dates if sales are sufficiently brisk, and release the hold on the venue if it looks like one makes more sense.

Future of Music Coalition @futureofmusic.bsky.social · 11d

In the narrow circumstances where it makes sense and it’s logistically possible, artists are already doing it.

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Future of Music Coalition @futureofmusic.bsky.social · 12d

Checks out.

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Future of Music Coalition @futureofmusic.bsky.social · 12d

The incuriosity of a particular kind of pundit.

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Future of Music Coalition @futureofmusic.bsky.social · 12d

@ashleybelanger.bsky.social has one of the more lucid explanations of what's in the new FTC Ticketmaster lawsuit here: arstechnica.com/tech-policy/...
Meanwhile the DOJ monopoly suit is set to go to trial in spring 2026.

“Yikes”: Internal emails reveal Ticketmaster helped scalpers jack up prices, FTC says

FTC sued Ticketmaster and Live Nation for turning “blind eye” to scalpers.

arstechnica.com

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