TicketMaster’s monopoly is quite an interesting case. Most examinations don’t show a regulatory moat, they just acquired/merged their way to dominance with main tool being protectionist contracts (we cease services if you ever use a competitor). However, dig more and there are multiple regulations they exploited to retain dominance:
- Claiming copyright over etickets to prohibit 3rd party secondary markets and private resale.
- BOTS act 2016 both inhibits touts (secondary market makers) and is costly to implement for firms.
- price floor laws (in some locales) prevent others from undercutting
- GDPR (and equivalent) has been costly to implement for these consumer data intensive services.

There are always laws, often ‘consumer protection’ oriented like the above, which get exploited by the large to crush the small and become the giant.

I don’t have enough info yet to claim it was these laws which enabled TM/LN’s malignant monopoly, but they obviously helped and my suspicion is always that regulatory moats are essential.

Does any one have more insights in the case? nostr:note10kmtsgenv2fquhh3txknm6vdv99agm7jaepqc2p2k6n5dhwuht4sqy949j