Snapshot via Google's Finance service

The two live entertainment giants released profit reports today, Ticketmaster having gained on last year’s figures, and Live Nation having declined slightly, year on year. The real news here is that talks for the merging of the two companies are looking positive, and the deal is looked for at the beginning of next year, a forecast that has seen the stock price of both companies jump by almost 10% in a single morning’s trading. Both companies are capped at over $600m, and will look for massive marketing and staffing synergies from a merger, hopefully amking them both a lot more profitable. You can read Live Nation’s press releases and filings here: http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=194146&p=irol-irhome

It remains to be seen whether this is good news for the gig-going public, as there’ll be almost no-one in the UK market able to compete with the giant that’s created for running really big mainstream gigs, and a lack of competition means there’s no need to keep ticket prices down and beat your neighbour.

Related Articles

• Ticketmaster and Live Nation Merger Approved – January 26, 2010
• Live Nation and Ticketmaster Edge Closer to a Merger – January 6, 2010
• Liberty Media Buys a Chunk Of LYV – February 3, 2010
• Live Nation’s SEC Filing On TKTM Merger – January 13, 2010
• Live Nation Selling Assets Solely To Repay Debt? – November 3, 2009