A Live Nation ticketing employee told a federal judge at the company’s antitrust trial that private messages where he mocked certain concertgoers and talked about “robbing them blind” were wrong and not reflective of how he meant to discuss pricing. Benjamin Baker, who is head of ticketing for Venue Nation, became a key witness after a Manhattan federal judge rejected Live Nation’s bid to exclude his instant-message communications from the case.
Baker testified Tuesday that the messages were “very immature and unacceptable” because of the language he used. He described the messages as reflecting an immature tone shared in a private Slack conversation years earlier, when he and a coworker discussed the prices some fans were paying for VIP-area access and other amenities, according to the testimony.
During cross-examination by Jeffrey Kessler, a lawyer for the states, Baker was confronted with what he wrote in early 2022 while discussing Live Nation’s pricing at the MidFlorida Credit Union Amphitheatre in Tampa. Kessler read aloud messages Baker sent to a coworker that described the customers as “so stupid” and included a boast about “robbing them blind, baby.” Kessler also confronted Baker with language Baker used about feeling bad about taking advantage of the people buying tickets.
Baker repeatedly expressed disappointment and regret, saying the words were not what he meant to convey. After Kessler read aloud a line in which Baker said he “almost feel[s] bad taking advantage of” the ticket-buying fans, Baker became emotional and his voice “briefly broke and went soft” as he explained: “I used very immature and regrettable language and that was not the language I was trying to convey.”
Kessler, at times raising his voice, challenged Baker’s framing that the remarks were about surprise at what fans were willing to pay rather than a broader policy approach. When Baker described the language as conveying his surprise that the market dictated fans were willing to pay $50 to park closer, Kessler responded, “You could have charged $25!” and then pressed the idea that Live Nation’s pricing behavior extracted money beyond what he said fans were required to buy.
Baker said the discussion involved “optional” expenses that no ticketholder had to purchase. Kessler replied that for Live Nation it was “also optional not to exploit every single dollar it can extract from these fans,” a remark the judge sustained an objection against. The exchange highlighted the states’ attempt to connect internal communications about pricing with their broader claims about monopoly behavior.
Kessler returned to the messaging when Baker addressed a rise in revenue from amenity services. Kessler read Baker’s earlier language back to him, characterizing it as “robbing them blind, baby.” Baker, who has been promoted twice since the private chat, also sought to shield the company by saying his conversation was “speaking for myself, not Live Nation as a whole,” and he said the discussion reflected the period when fans emerged from the coronavirus pandemic desperate to see concerts.
Kessler also asked Baker whether he had been demoted or lost pay in connection with the communications. Baker testified: “No sir, not at this time.” A Live Nation lawyer declined to question Baker, and the company previously argued the statements should be barred because they reflected off-the-cuff banter rather than policy, and that company executives only learned of the conversation this month.
The trial continues in the wake of a recent Justice Department settlement with Live Nation intended to open up some ticketing and promotional markets to more competition. Federal government lawyers told the court the settlement will reduce ticket prices, while all but six of 39 states and the District of Columbia that joined the lawsuit remain in the case, arguing the government fell short of its goals of dismantling a monopoly and forcing a breakup of Live Nation.