COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENT LIABILITIES |
9 Months Ended |
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Sep. 30, 2021 | |
| Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract] | |
| COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENT LIABILITIES | COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENT LIABILITIES Litigation
Consumer Class Actions
The following putative class action lawsuits were filed against Live Nation and/or Ticketmaster in Canada: Thompson-Marcial v. Ticketmaster Canada Holdings ULC (Ontario Superior Court of Justice, filed September 2018); McPhee v. Live Nation Entertainment, Inc., et al. (Superior Court of Quebec, District of Montreal, filed September 2018); Crystal Watch v. Live Nation Entertainment, Inc., et al. (Court of Queen’s Bench for Saskatchewan, by amendments filed September 2018); and Gomel v. Live Nation Entertainment, Inc., et al. (Supreme Court of British Columbia, Vancouver Registry, filed October 2018). Similar putative class actions were filed in the United States during the same time period, but as of November 2020, each of the lawsuits filed in the United States has been dismissed with prejudice.
The Canadian lawsuits make similar factual allegations that Live Nation and/or Ticketmaster engage in conduct that is intended to encourage the resale of tickets on secondary ticket exchanges at elevated prices. Based on these allegations, each plaintiff asserts violations of different provincial and federal laws. Each plaintiff also seeks to represent a class of individuals who purchased tickets on a secondary ticket exchange, as defined in each plaintiff’s complaint. The Watch complaint also makes claims related to Ticketmaster’s fee display practices on the primary market. The complaints seek a variety of remedies, including unspecified compensatory damages, punitive damages, restitution, injunctive relief and attorneys’ fees and costs.
The McPhee matter is stayed pending the outcome of the Watch matter, and the Thompson-Marcial, Watch, and Gomel cases are in the class certification phase. In April 2021, the court in the Gomel lawsuit refused to certify all claims other than those pled under British Columbia’s Business Practices and Consumer Protection Act and claims for punitive damages, but the court did certify a class of British Columbia residents who purchased tickets to an event in Canada on any secondary market exchange from June 30, 2015 through April 15, 2021 that were initially purchased on Ticketmaster.ca. We filed a notice of appeal of the class certification ruling in May 2021, and the plaintiff filed a cross-appeal shortly thereafter.
Based on information presently known to management, we do not believe that a loss is probable of occurring at this time, and we believe that the potential liability, if any, will not have a material adverse effect on our financial position, cash flows or results of operations. Further, we do not currently believe that the claims asserted in these lawsuits have merit, and considerable uncertainty exists regarding any monetary damages that will be asserted against us. We continue to vigorously defend these actions.
CIE Arbitration
In July 2019, we entered into agreements with Corporación Interamericana de Entretenimiento, S.A.B. de C.V. (“CIE”) and Grupo Televisa, S.A.B. (“TV”) to acquire an aggregate 51% interest in OCESA Entretenimiento, S.A. de C.V. (“OCESA”) and certain other related subsidiaries of CIE. In May 2020, we notified CIE and TV that we were terminating our agreements with them and commenced binding arbitration proceedings, in New York, New York, before the International Court of Arbitration of the International Chamber of Commerce (“ICC”), seeking a declaratory judgment that we had properly terminated the CIE purchase agreement and that any obligations thereunder were excused. In July 2020, CIE filed its response to our claims, seeking specific performance to require us to proceed with closing under the CIE purchase agreement and damages in an unspecified amount arising from our alleged failure to timely close. The matter has been assigned to a panel of arbitrators and a hearing had been scheduled to commence in June 2022. In September 2021, we entered into amendments to revive the previously terminated purchase agreements with CIE and TV and proceed with the acquisition of OCESA on modified terms. In connection with the purchase agreement amendment entered into with CIE, the pending arbitration matter before the ICC has been suspended pending the closing of the OCESA acquisition, and we and CIE have agreed to terminate the ICC arbitration and release any claims arising from the earlier termination of the purchase agreements upon completion of the acquisition.
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