Live Nation Entertainment has Taylor Swift and Beyoncé to thank for propelling the live concerts organizer to its strongest quarterly results to date.
The parent company of Ticketmaster, which drew the wrath of Swifties and lawmakers after botching ticket sales for the wildly successful Taylor Swift Eras Tour, on Thursday reported third-quarter 2023 revenue of $8.3 billion, up 32% from a year ago.
"Today we delivered our strongest quarter ever and are on pace for a record 2023," Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino said in a statement.
The ticket-industry giant said it has sold a record 140 million tickets so far this year, up 17% year-over-year and has already surpassed the 121 million tickets sold in all of 2022. It said revenue from concerts jumped 32% to $7 billion.
Ticketmaster sold 257 million fee-bearing tickets so far this year, up 22% year-over-year. In the third quarter, Ticketmaster sales surged 57% to $833 million and 90 million fee-bearing tickets were sold in the period.
To be sure, live concerts returned with a bang in 2023, with Taylor Swift and Beyoncé becoming the hottest tickets in town. But a slew of stars took to the road this year, including Pink, Harry Styles, Bad Bunny, the Jonas Brothers and Bruce Springsteen.
Live Nation (LYV) is anticipating an equally robust 2024 for live concert, saying that about half of the shows booked for next year are for large venues and that trend is up double-digits from the previous year.
"We're very confident we're going to have big record-breaking tours on the road next year, as Bad Bunny just went up again and more to come …. So we're very confident that both Ticketmaster, Live Nation are going to have big, strong years next year with a pipe full that will overcome this year's numbers," Rapino said in a call with analyst on Thursday.
Separately, the Wall Street Journal on Thursday reported that the Justice Department is investigating Live Nation for using anticompetitive practices to book venues and top talent and manage their ticket sales, citing people familiar with the matter. It reported that the probe is into whether these agreements limit venues' ability to work with other ticket services.
The DOJ told CNN it had no comment on the matter.
Live Nation President and CFO Joe Berchtold addressed the WSJ article in the call with analysts, saying "let me emphasize that as far as we can tell, nobody thinks that the fundamentals that drive our promotions business are unlawful."
Members of Parliament will cast their first confidence vote of the fall sitting on Wednesday, but with it poised to fail, political posturing is already ramping up over future tests of the Liberal minority government.
A man who "systematically isolated, manipulated, deceived, abused, and exploited" an elderly North Vancouver woman has lost his ownership stake in her home.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford says he wants to build a tunnel under Highway 401 that would stretch from Brampton to Scarborough.
A major yogurt maker is recalling one of its brands in Canada over concerns that it may cause illness in immunocompromised people.
Mortgage rule changes allow easier entry into the housing market with lower monthly payments, but also an increased cost of repaying a mortgage.
Careful listeners of Mozart may notice an unfamiliar melody attributed to his childhood works in their streaming feeds this week.
More than a third of children around the world were nearsighted in 2023, and this proportion will rise to almost 40 per cent in 2050, according to new research.
More Canadians are installing solar panels on their homes, but some are facing challenges when it comes to getting home insurance after the panels are put in.
Pope Francis took the unusual decision Wednesday to expel 10 people – a bishop, priests and laypeople -- from a troubled Catholic movement in Peru after a Vatican investigation uncovered 'sadistic' abuses of power, authority and spirituality.
A man who "systematically isolated, manipulated, deceived, abused, and exploited" an elderly North Vancouver woman has lost his ownership stake in her home.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford says he wants to build a tunnel under Highway 401 that would stretch from Brampton to Scarborough.
A veteran Montreal police officer says racism is a 'cancer eating away at the organization' in a stinging resignation letter.
A bizarre discovery was made on a dirt road in Clearview Township.
A Canadian school photography company says it was hit by a ransomware attack that held about 3,500 photos of students in several Saskatchewan school divisions hostage, among others across the country.
Searching for polar bears where the Churchill River dumps into Canada's massive Hudson Bay, biologist Geoff York scans a region that's on a low fat, low ice diet because of climate change. And it's getting lower on polar bears.
Two people were hurt in an explosion Wednesday morning at a courthouse in Southern California, authorities said.
Pope Francis took the unusual decision Wednesday to expel 10 people – a bishop, priests and laypeople -- from a troubled Catholic movement in Peru after a Vatican investigation uncovered 'sadistic' abuses of power, authority and spirituality.
A Missouri man convicted of breaking into a woman’s home and repeatedly stabbing her was executed Tuesday over the objections of the victim’s family and the prosecutor, who wanted the death sentence commuted to life in prison.
U.S. President Joe Biden said Wednesday that fighting between Israel and Hezbollah threatens to become an 'all-out war' as his top diplomat and other advisers worked behind the scenes pressing for a temporary cease-fire to calm the escalating conflict that has killed more than 600 people in Lebanon in recent days.
Dozens of U.S. troops have been deployed to Cyprus amid sharply escalating tensions between Israel and Hezbollah.
Interested in owning Alex Jones' conspiracy theory empire, Infowars? Its parent company, Free Speech Systems, is now officially up for sale following the approval of a Texas bankruptcy judge on Tuesday.
An academic who studies the flow of information in an era of mistruths and polarized views says it is very difficult to gauge the effect of media content on people's behaviour.
Members of Parliament will cast their first confidence vote of the fall sitting on Wednesday, but with it poised to fail, political posturing is already ramping up over future tests of the Liberal minority government.
Liberal MP Faycal El-Khoury, who was born in Lebanon, says Canada needs to push its peer countries more to stop a cycle of violence in the Middle East, or it could lead to a world war.
A 20-second session of self-compassionate touch reduced stress, increased kindness to participants and improved mental well-being, according to a recent study.
A major yogurt maker is recalling one of its brands in Canada over concerns that it may cause illness in immunocompromised people.
A team at the University of Waterloo are developing a process to 3D-print bones, which could dramatically improve the quality of life for cancer and trauma patients.
More than a third of children around the world were nearsighted in 2023, and this proportion will rise to almost 40 per cent in 2050, according to new research.
A Canadian school photography company says it was hit by a ransomware attack that held about 3,500 photos of students in several Saskatchewan school divisions hostage, among others across the country.
The carbon fibre hull of the experimental submersible that imploded en route to the wreckage of the Titanic had imperfections dating to the manufacturing process and behaved differently after a loud bang was heard on one of the dives the year before the tragedy, an engineer with the National Transportation Safety Board said Wednesday.
Careful listeners of Mozart may notice an unfamiliar melody attributed to his childhood works in their streaming feeds this week.
Although it's a bestseller on Amazon, the late Kim Porter did not write a tell-all memoir detailing an abusive relationship with her longtime partner Sean 'Diddy' Combs, her children said in a statement Tuesday.
Lady Gaga isn't joking around about releasing new music. The Oscar-winner announced on Tuesday that she's releasing a new album titled 'Harlequin,' which she said in an Instagram post is a companion album to the upcoming film 'Joker: Folie a Deux.'
Mortgage rule changes allow easier entry into the housing market with lower monthly payments, but also an increased cost of repaying a mortgage.
Interested in owning Alex Jones' conspiracy theory empire, Infowars? Its parent company, Free Speech Systems, is now officially up for sale following the approval of a Texas bankruptcy judge on Tuesday.
A federal judge sentenced FTX co-founder Sam Bankman-Fried’s former girlfriend to two years in prison, citing her extensive cooperation with prosecutors that led to the conviction of the former face of the cryptocurrency industry in one of the largest financial frauds in U.S. history.
From cellphone 'hotels' to patchwork policies to recalibrating lesson plans, teachers and schools across Canada are learning to navigate a classroom without cellphones.
An ordinary day on the job delivering mail in East Elmwood quickly turned dramatic for Canada Post letter carrier Jared Plourde. A woman on his route was calling out in distress.
The Newcomers Football Club, an impromptu team made up of asylum-seekers, has helped provide Boubacar Lukaku and others with a joy that erases their stress. And it's helped connect them with a supportive community as they navigate the challenges of a new country.
NHL star forward Claude Giroux had his car stolen in Ottawa on Tuesday evening, his wife says.
A soccer game in England on Tuesday night drove a spike in online traffic across the Atlantic to a website launched by the Newfoundland and Labrador government.
Watching Connor McDavid screaming in a locker room is something hockey fans didn't necessarily expect.
A bizarre discovery was made on a dirt road in Clearview Township.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford says he wants to build a tunnel under Highway 401 that would stretch from Brampton to Scarborough.
NHL star forward Claude Giroux had his car stolen in Ottawa on Tuesday evening, his wife says.
An Indigenous artist has a buyer-beware warning ahead of Sept. 30, the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.
Police are looking to the public for help after thieves broke into a Lethbridge ice creamery, stealing from the store.
An ordinary day on the job delivering mail in East Elmwood quickly turned dramatic for Canada Post letter carrier Jared Plourde. A woman on his route was calling out in distress.
Fire has destroyed a barn and 17,000 plants at a family-owned business in Lower Coverdale, N.B.
Before influencers on social media, Canada’s Jeanne Beker was bringing the world of high fashion down to earth and as Calgary’s Glenbow Museum gets a major make-over, it will include a new exhibition showcasing the pop culture icon.
A sea lion swam free after a rescue team disentangled it near Vancouver Island earlier this week.
A Nova Scotian YouTuber has launched a mini-truck bookmobile.
Cole Haas is more than just an avid fan of the F.W. Johnson Wildcats football team. He's a fixture on the sidelines, a source of encouragement, and a beloved member of the team.
Getting a photograph of a rainbow? Common. Getting a photo of a lightning strike? Rare. Getting a photo of both at the same time? Extremely rare, but it happened to a Manitoba photographer this week.
Mounties say two men and two women were charged with more than two dozen drug and weapons offences this summer following a year-long investigation into a Metro Vancouver drug-trafficking ring.
Mounties have seized nearly two dozen guns and several kilograms of explosives following a pair of searches at what police described as a "fortified" residence above a business in Surrey, B.C.
When he happened upon an online video about his hometown in Italy, Cosimo Geracitano couldn’t have been more surprised.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford says he wants to build a tunnel under Highway 401 that would stretch from Brampton to Scarborough.
Police have arrested one suspect and are looking for two others in connection with a rash of thefts in which thieves gained access to moving tractor trailers and stole more than $2.2 million in merchandise while the vehicles were stopped at red lights.
The union representing some elementary teachers in Toronto says Premier Doug Ford’s comments about a field trip highlighting the challenges facing a northern Ontario First Nation, which ended with students chanting pro-Palestinian slogans, are taking away from the plight of the impacted Indigenous Peoples.
A suspect who died while in police custody earlier this month was unarmed when he was tackled and punched by a group of Calgary officers, the province's police watchdog said Wednesday.
Police seized more than $500,000 worth of cocaine and methamphetamine from a Calgary home during a recent search.
A new report says increasing Indigenous participation in Alberta's labour market could boost the province's GDP by between two and three percentage points, the equivalent of $8 billion to $11 billion annually.
NHL star forward Claude Giroux had his car stolen in Ottawa on Tuesday evening, his wife says.
The Ottawa Police Service is investigating reports of gunfire in Ottawa's west end on Tuesday evening.
The City of Ottawa has found more than $564,000 in back taxes are no longer able to be recovered and staff are recommending councillors approve writing it off.
The opposition tried unsuccessfully on Wednesday to find out more about the state of public funds invested in Northvolt.
The Bloc Québécois is giving the Liberal government a deadline of Oct. 29 to pass two pieces of legislation related to old-age security and supply management.
The Legault government is defending its $6.5 million subsidy to the Presidents Cup, a prestigious golf tournament. On Wednesday morning, the three opposition parties joined together in criticizing the subsidy, pointing to the record $11 billion deficit and the crying needs in several public sectors.
Charges have been laid in an incident that seriously injured a man at a shelter south of Edmonton last month.
A new report says increasing Indigenous participation in Alberta's labour market could boost the province's GDP by between two and three percentage points, the equivalent of $8 billion to $11 billion annually.
Executive Director of Friends of Medicare, Chris Gallaway, speaks with Alberta Primetime host Michael Higgins about the need for increased health care funding.
Lobster harvesters from the Maritimes walked out of a meeting with Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) Tuesday after officials allegedly refused to discuss what harvesters say is illegal fishing that has been taking place out of season since August.
The co-chair of a working group looking into support for Nova Scotia's wine industry has resigned, calling the talks with the provincial government an "enormous disappointment."
Both ferries that take passengers between Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island are out of service, leaving that mode of transportation off the table for those looking to travel between the two Maritime provinces.
Three people are dead and one person is seriously injured after a two-vehicle collision on a Manitoba roadway.
An Indigenous artist has a buyer-beware warning ahead of Sept. 30, the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.
A new monument honouring the victims of a plane crash in Winnipeg in 1972 was unveiled Wednesday afternoon.
Minister of Education Jeremy Cockrill is facing a second investigation by the province's Conflict of Interest Commissioner (COIC) – this time concerning investments into helium companies that have held government contracts.
In a human trafficking trial Tuesday, a Bangladeshi woman says she was sexually assaulted nearly two years ago during her time working at a small-town Saskatchewan restaurant.
Much of Saskatchewan has been experiencing warmer than usual temperatures for this time of year, which has people out making the most of it.
The Brant County Health Unit (BCHU) says it has its first case this year of suspected human exposure to an animal with rabies after a person was believed to be bit by a bat.
Newlyweds claim the company they hired to take their wedding photos and videos took off with their precious memories – and their money.
The new tower would be built at the former longtime home of CTV Kitchener but people living on the quiet streets nearby say they need some questions answered first.
In a human trafficking trial Tuesday, a Bangladeshi woman says she was sexually assaulted nearly two years ago during her time working at a small-town Saskatchewan restaurant.
A Canadian school photography company says it was hit by a ransomware attack that held about 3,500 photos of students in several Saskatchewan school divisions hostage, among others across the country.
The Resort Village of Candle Lake says the devastating Monday morning fire has completely destroyed a portion of the Candle Lake Golf Course clubhouse.
GRAPHIC WARNING: A woman accusing Jacob Hoggard of sexual assault in northern Ontario told his trial the musician raped, hit and choked her before urinating on her in a hotel room after she attended his band's concert and an after-party eight years ago.
Raids of two residences in Cochrane on Tuesday yielded $25,000 in illegal drugs, firearms and $3,500 in cash.
A 25-year-old suspect was charged with impaired driving Sept. 21 after police spotted two people without helmets on an ATV on Sand Bay Road in Goulais River.
A statement from the province said Musyj will work closely with LHSC senior leadership and staff to address concerns regarding hospital governance and operations, and management practices, including concerning financial performance, that were found as a result of a third-party review.
After several years off due to the pandemic and a cancellation, the annual United Way 3M Harvest Lunch was back in full force at Covent Garden Market Square on Wednesday afternoon.
Fire crews from Listowel, Atwood, and Monkton battled the blaze on Line 81, which started around 5 p.m. Tuesday.
A bizarre discovery was made on a dirt road in Clearview Township.
This week marks the opening of a new road in Barrie's south end, which is anticipated to help ease traffic congestion.
The province is changing how 911 calls are dispatched across Simcoe County with a faster, more effective system prioritizing life-threatening emergencies, such as cardiac arrest, unconsciousness or choking.
A statement from the province said Musyj will work closely with LHSC senior leadership and staff to address concerns regarding hospital governance and operations, and management practices, including concerning financial performance, that were found as a result of a third-party review.
Windsor-based benefits company, GreenShield Canada, has been recognized as a leading non-profit, part of Fortune’s Change the World List 2024.
A major yogurt maker is recalling one of its brands in Canada over concerns that it may cause illness in immunocompromised people.
British Columbia's New Democrats have unveiled a plan that Leader David Eby says will help middle-income families purchase a home by financing 40 per cent of the price.
Mounties say two men and two women were charged with more than two dozen drug and weapons offences this summer following a year-long investigation into a Metro Vancouver drug-trafficking ring.
When he happened upon an online video about his hometown in Italy, Cosimo Geracitano couldn’t have been more surprised.
A pair of runaway pigs are in the custody of an animal sanctuary in the Okanagan after evading police and volunteers for hours earlier this week.
The Red Bridge, a historic landmark in Kamloops, B.C., was completely destroyed by fire early Thursday morning.
Animal protection officers in British Columbia have rescued three pit bulls – including one that gave birth to 10 puppies – from a rat-infested home in Kelowna.
Dozens of police officers and support workers have come to Lethbridge for the Social Disorder and Urban Crime Conference.
Police are looking to the public for help after thieves broke into a Lethbridge ice creamery, stealing from the store.
To make higher education an easier step to take for Indigenous students, the University of Lethbridge is dropping some fees for those applicants.
Unless there is more funding from the province, the Sault Area Hospital is expected to finish the year with a budget deficit of more than $20 million.
A northern Ontario woman in her first term as mayor of Timmins has given birth to her second child.
GRAPHIC WARNING: A woman accusing Jacob Hoggard of sexual assault in northern Ontario told his trial the musician raped, hit and choked her before urinating on her in a hotel room after she attended his band's concert and an after-party eight years ago.
A soccer game in England on Tuesday night drove a spike in online traffic across the Atlantic to a website launched by the Newfoundland and Labrador government.
Newfoundland and Labrador sponsored a minor football team in England, now they’re about to play one of the biggest clubs in European soccer.
Newfoundland and Labrador's chief medical officer is monitoring the rise of whooping cough infections across the province as cases of the highly contagious disease continue to grow across Canada.
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