Ariel Emanuel speaks onstage during Los Angeles LGBT Center's 48th Anniversary Gala Vanguard Awards at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on September 23, 2017 in Beverly Hills, California.

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Concerns about IMG's ownership in a ticketing company that Live Nation had spun off in 2010 led to a Department of Justice request that IMG parent Endeavor's chief executive Ari Emanuel and president Mark Shapiro resign from LN's board of directors, sources tell Billboard.

As part of a consent decree governing Live Nation's merger with Ticketmaster in 2010, the DOJ assistant attorney general for its Antitrust Division Christine Varney required Ticketmaster to sell off Paciolan, a ticketing company it had purchased three years earlier, to Comcast-Spectacor. In 2017, Paciolan was again sold as part of an intra-company transaction to sports marketing platform Learfield IMG College, which Endeavor owns a stake in through its blockbuster purchase of IMG in 2013. Silver Lake and the Comcast-backed Atairos also hold stakes in Learfield with Endeavor.

Emanuel has been on the Live Nation board of directors since 2007 while Shapiro joined the Live Nation board in 2008.

“While there has been no violation of law, we understand and respect the DOJ’s concerns regarding the current similarities of our businesses," a statement from an Endeavor spokesperson reads.

Why the DOJ decided to act now — under the Biden Administration, the DOJ's acting assistant attorney general for Antitrust is career DOJ deputy AG and Distinguished Service Award winner  Richard Powers — is unclear. Emanuel had already agreed to resign from the board effective two weeks ago when his final stock awards in the company had vested.

In a release, the DOJ described the ownership issue as an illegal interlocking directorate where "one person – or an agent of one person or company – serves as an officer or director of two companies."

Section 8 of the Clayton Act "prohibits the same person or company from serving as an officer or director of two competing companies, except under certain defined safe harbors."

"Endeavor and Live Nation compete closely in many sports and entertainment markets. Both Live Nation and Endeavor, through its wholly owned and minority owned subsidiaries, promote and sell tickets and VIP packages that include tickets, lodging and travel accommodations, to live music, sporting and other entertainment events," the release explained.

“These resignations ensure that Endeavor and Live Nation will compete independently,” explains Powers in a release. “Executives are not permitted to hold board positions on companies that compete with each other. The division will enforce the antitrust laws to make sure that all companies compete on the merits.”

 

Why the DOJ decided to act now — under the Biden Administration, the DOJ's acting assistant attorney general for Antitrust is career DOJ deputy AG and Distinguished Service Award winner  Richard Powers — is unclear. Emanuel had already agreed to resign from the board effective two weeks ago when his final stock awards in the company had vested.

In a release, the DOJ described the ownership issue as an illegal interlocking directorate where "one person – or an agent of one person or company – serves as an officer or director of two companies."

Section 8 of the Clayton Act "prohibits the same person or company from serving as an officer or director of two competing companies, except under certain defined safe harbors."

"Endeavor and Live Nation compete closely in many sports and entertainment markets. Both Live Nation and Endeavor, through its wholly owned and minority owned subsidiaries, promote and sell tickets and VIP packages that include tickets, lodging and travel accommodations, to live music, sporting and other entertainment events," the release explained.

“These resignations ensure that Endeavor and Live Nation will compete independently,” explains Powers in a release. “Executives are not permitted to hold board positions on companies that compete with each other. The division will enforce the antitrust laws to make sure that all companies compete on the merits.”

Why the DOJ decided to act now — under the Biden Administration, the DOJ's acting assistant attorney general for Antitrust is career DOJ deputy AG and Distinguished Service Award winner  Richard Powers — is unclear. Emanuel had already agreed to resign from the board effective two weeks ago when his final stock awards in the company had vested.

In a release, the DOJ described the ownership issue as an illegal interlocking directorate where "one person – or an agent of one person or company – serves as an officer or director of two companies."

Section 8 of the Clayton Act "prohibits the same person or company from serving as an officer or director of two competing companies, except under certain defined safe harbors."

"Endeavor and Live Nation compete closely in many sports and entertainment markets. Both Live Nation and Endeavor, through its wholly owned and minority owned subsidiaries, promote and sell tickets and VIP packages that include tickets, lodging and travel accommodations, to live music, sporting and other entertainment events," the release explained.

“These resignations ensure that Endeavor and Live Nation will compete independently,” explains Powers in a release. “Executives are not permitted to hold board positions on companies that compete with each other. The division will enforce the antitrust laws to make sure that all companies compete on the merits.”

 in London, joined by IDLES and Kojey Radical. He later collaborated with Fred Again.. on the electronic track “Lights Burn Dimmer,” which incorporates and reshapes elements from Jamie’s 2023 song “Hippodrome.”

During a conversation with Radio 1 presenter Jack Saunders on Wednesday, Aug. 19, Jamie called the collaboration a “big deal” for him. “That song, when I wrote it, I hadn’t realised until I heard Fred’s version how much hope was in the lyrics. I felt quite emotional when I heard Fred’s version, and his spin on it. That was really helpful for me, as I wrote that song at quite a difficult time in my life. To see it turned into a more euphoric thing was really quite lovely.”

Jamie will offer an early taste of the new album during a small, exclusive performance at Scala in London on Thursday, Aug. 20. The concert will be his first headline appearance since playing to 40,000 people at Finsbury Park, although he made a short guest appearance with Fred Again.. in February during the producer’s USB002 tour run at Alexandra Palace.

After breaking through in 2007 with the Mercury Prize nominated Panic Prevention, Jamie went on to release another four studio records, with each reaching the top 10 of the Official U.K. Albums Chart. He has also appeared at Glastonbury Festival on several occasions, including his widely praised headline performance on the Woodsies Stage in 2022.

Check out “3310” below.

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