I think there will be little change for consumers. Even though Ticketmaster will lose its main competitor, I don't think it will make much difference since I read that Live Nation only started selling tickets in Sept 2008. Since they haven't been a competitor to Ticketmaster for very long I think losing them as a separate entity will not change things much for consumers. Before Live Nation started selling tickets, Ticketmaster used to contract Live Nation to do concert promotion and now that function will be in-house. And it may be easier for consumers to go one place for tickets.

In my opinion, this would be very bad for the consumer. The main benefit that would come out of this merger is for corporations looking to sponsor or become integrated with the music business. The merger would allow Ticketmaster/Live Nation to have a vast amount of control not only over live performances and tours, but also recorded music and other aspects of the music business. While this is a great opportunity for sponsors, record companies, and T/LN, only consumers with fat wallets will really benefit much from this merger. In the meantime, those of us that used to rely on concerts as a relatively affordable form of entertainment are going to get the short end of the stick.

It's ridiculous that any one entity would even have the opportunity to have such a stronghold over the music business. Over time, more and more ticket sales have moved under the umbrella of Ticketmaster, which charges absurd fees and extra costs for consumers wanting to simply attend a concert. I've purchased tickets through Ticketmaster before where the fees have almost been as much as the tickets themselves. Merging with Live Nation would only make matters worse as the two together would ultimately have ties to over 200 music artists, many of them major headliners such as Madonna, Jay-Z, Miley Cyrus.

Guess where you will HAVE to buy these tickets from? You guessed it, Ticketmaster. The only consumers this merger might benefit are scalpers who will buy tickets in bulk, and after a concert sells out online in 20 minutes, can turn around and jack up prices for the average person who has no choice but to settle for ridiculously inflated ticket prices.

In my opinion, this will be very bad for consumers (fans), as consolidation usually means less choice and higher prices. Some analysts have predicted that fees could come down as both companies realize operational efficiencies, but I think the likelihood of that happening is low, given the history here.

Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine said in the New York Times (http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/09/business/media/09carr.html?_r=3) that fans need to develop an organized counterweight quickly. Check out www.musicliberationfund.org (sponsored by my company). If you agree, spread the word and let venues know.

Giving Ticketmaster any more control over the ticket distribution and venues will not be good for consumers. They already have too much influence.