Ticketmaster, TicketsNow to hand over broker information to state and federal officials

Bowing to pressure from state, federal and Canadian authorities, Ticketmaster Entertainment said today that it was going to turn over to officials “certain information about TicketsNow’s broker clients and their sales activities.”

In an email to TicketsNow clients, Ticketmaster outlined some of its reasons for doing it, stressing that it centered around its handling of Bruce Springsteen ticket sales, which were part of a settlement the company reached with New Jersey Attorney General Anne Milgram.

But, the company said it is not only turning over records pertaining to the Springsteen sales, but it was also turning over “the names and contact information of all ticket brokers with whom TicketsNow does business,” in addition to “copies of TicketsNow broker contracts.”

One of the government entities likely requesting the information from Ticketmaster and TicketsNow is the U.S. Department of Justice, which recently launched a second wave of questions as part of its investigation into the proposed merger of Ticketmaster and Live Nation. There is also speculation that a grand jury may be seeking information on ticket holdbacks.
Text of the email sent out by Ticketmaster is below:

As you are aware, recent events have resulted in a heightened level of interest in Ticketmaster’s and TicketsNow’s businesses. One by-product of this heightened interest is that we have received a number of subpoenas and demands for sworn information about TicketsNow and its broker clients. These include formal requests for information and/or subpoenas from, among others, the United States Department of Justice, the New Jersey Attorney General’s office, the Federal Trade Commission and the Canadian Competition Bureau.

The purpose of this letter is to inform you that we are now required to hand over certain information about TicketsNow’s broker clients and their sales activities. In particular, we are required to identify: (i) information regarding any seller of tickets on TicketsNow for the May 21 and May 23, 2009 Bruce Springsteen concerts at the IZOD Center in New Jersey; (ii) the names and contact information of all ticket brokers with whom TicketsNow does business; and (iii) copies of TicketsNow broker contracts.

We are taking steps to protect the confidentiality of these materials once produced but feel we are required to provide these materials in response to lawful demands. Therefore, please be advised that we will respond to these subpoenas and demands for information one week from today.

We appreciate your understanding in this matter.