COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENT LIABILITIES |
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| Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENT LIABILITIES | COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENT LIABILITIES We have non-cancelable contracts related to minimum performance payments with various artists, other event-related costs and nonrecoupable ticketing contract advances. We also have commitments relating to additions to property, plant, and equipment under certain construction commitments for facilities and venues.
As of December 31, 2024, our future minimum payments under non-cancelable contracts and capital expenditure commitments consist of the following:
Certain agreements relating to acquisitions provide for deferred purchase consideration payments at future dates. A liability is established at the time of the acquisition for these fixed payments. For obligations payable at a date greater than twelve months from the acquisition date, we apply a discount rate to calculate the present value of the obligations. As of December 31, 2024, we have accrued $1.5 million in other current liabilities and $11.8 million in other long-term liabilities and, as of December 31, 2023, we had accrued $14.9 million in other current liabilities and $6.8 million in other long-term liabilities, related to these deferred purchase consideration payments.
We have contingent obligations related to acquisitions which were accounted for as business combinations. Contingent consideration associated with business combinations is recorded at fair value at the time of the acquisition and reflected at current fair value for each subsequent reporting period thereafter until settled. We record these fair value changes in our statements of operations as selling, general and administrative expenses. The contingent consideration is generally subject to payout following the achievement of future performance targets and a portion is expected to be payable in the next twelve months. As of December 31, 2024, we have accrued $39.3 million in other current liabilities and $9.0 million in other long-term liabilities and, as of December 31, 2023, we had accrued $83.9 million in other current liabilities and $22.3 million in other long-term liabilities, representing the fair value of these estimated payments. The last contingency period for which we have an outstanding contingent payment is for the period ending July 2049. See Note 7 – Fair Value Measurements for further discussion related to the valuation of these contingent payments.
As of December 31, 2024 and 2023, we guaranteed the debt of third parties of approximately $19.4 million and $19.4 million, respectively, primarily related to maximum credit limits on employee and tour-related credit cards and obligations under a venue management agreement.
Litigation
Astroworld Litigation
On November 5, 2021, the Astroworld music festival was held in Houston, Texas. During the course of the festival, ten members of the audience sustained fatal injuries and others suffered non-fatal injuries. Following these events, at least 450 civil lawsuits have been filed against Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. and related entities, asserting insufficient crowd control and other theories, seeking compensatory and punitive damages. Pursuant to a February 2022 order of the state Multidistrict Litigation Panel, matter 21-1033, the civil cases have been assigned to Judge Kristen Hawkins of the 11th District Court of Harris County, Texas, for oversight of pretrial matters under Texas’s rules governing multidistrict litigation.
During the year ended December 31, 2024, all remaining wrongful death lawsuits were settled, and, with the exception of a small number of claims that are subject to a show cause dismissal order, all pending personal injury lawsuits filed against the Company have also been settled. As a result, we recognized $454.9 million for the year ended December 31, 2024 within selling, general and administrative expenses for the estimated probable losses in excess of our expected insurance recoveries. The amounts recorded as of December 31, 2024 represent our best estimate of the ultimate loss associated with all remaining lawsuits and claims.
Our assessment of loss, which resulted from a complex series of judgments about future events and uncertainties, is based on estimates and assumptions that have been deemed reasonable by management, but that may prove to be incomplete or inaccurate, and unanticipated events and circumstances may occur that might cause us to change those estimates and assumptions or recognize additional losses.
Department of Justice Complaint
In May 2024, the United States Department of Justice, Antitrust Division, together with the attorneys general of twenty-nine states plus the District of Columbia, filed a civil antitrust complaint (the “Complaint”) against Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. and Ticketmaster in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York alleging violations of various federal and state laws pertaining to antitrust, competition, unlawful or unfair business practices, restraint of trade, and other causes of action. The Complaint requests various forms of relief for the alleged violations, including without limitation the divestiture of Ticketmaster by the Company, cancellation of certain ticketing contracts, enjoining the Company from engaging in anticompetitive practices, and other forms of relief. Certain states also seek unspecified damages for their citizens. The Company believes it has substantial defenses to the claims asserted in the lawsuit and will vigorously defend itself.
The United States filed an Amended Complaint in August 2024, adding ten additional states as plaintiffs but not otherwise materially amending the claims asserted in the lawsuit. The Company filed a motion to dismiss certain claims in the Amended Complaint in September 2024.
Antitrust Litigation
The Company is a defendant in three putative antitrust consumer class actions alleging violations of federal and state antitrust laws, among other causes of action. In Heckman, et al. v. Live Nation Entertainment, et al., filed in the Central District of California in January 2022, the District Court denied defendants’ motion to compel arbitration in August 2023. The Ninth Circuit affirmed the District Court’s ruling in October 2024. In January 2025, the Company filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit. The Company believes it has substantial defenses to the claims alleged in the lawsuit and will continue to vigorously defend itself.
Two other putative class actions were filed in the Southern District of New York in August and September 2024: In Re Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. and Ticketmaster L.L.C. Antitrust Litigation, and Jacobson v. Live Nation Entertainment, Inc., et al. While these lawsuits are at their initial stages, the Company believes it has substantial defenses to the claims alleged therein and will vigorously defend itself.
Other Litigation
From time to time, we are involved in other legal proceedings arising in the ordinary course of our business, including proceedings and claims based upon purported violations of antitrust laws, intellectual property rights and tortious interference, which could cause us to incur significant expenses. We have also been the subject of personal injury and wrongful death claims relating to accidents at our venues in connection with our operations. As required, we have accrued our estimate of the probable settlement or other losses for the resolution of any outstanding claims. These estimates have been developed in consultation with counsel and are based upon an analysis of potential results, including, in some cases, estimated redemption rates for the settlement offered, assuming a combination of litigation and settlement strategies. It is possible, however, that future results of operations for any particular period could be materially affected by changes in our assumptions or the effectiveness of our strategies related to these proceedings.
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