May 23 (Reuters) - The U.S. Justice Department on

Thursday sued to break up Live Nation Entertainment ( LYV ),

saying the big concert promoter and its Ticketmaster unit

illegally inflated concert ticket prices, hurting artists and

their fans.

The average ticket price for one of the top concert tours

reached $122.84 last year, up from $91.86 in 2019, according to

the live music trade publication Pollstar. Some fans pay

considerably more on the secondary market.

Here are several factors why ticket prices are so expensive.

FEES

Announcing the lawsuit, Attorney General Merrick Garland

said: "Ticketmaster can impose a seemingly endless list of fees

on fans. These include ticketing fees, service fees, convenience

fees, platinum fees, price master fees, per order fees, handling

fees and payment processing fees."

Fees paid to attend a live concert in the U.S. far exceed

fees in comparable parts of the world, the complaint notes. One

2018 report from the Government Accountability Office estimated

those fees boosted ticket prices by an average of 27%.

Delivery fees to cover mailing expenses, a facility charge

paid to the venue and a ticket processing fee can all add up.

PRE-SALES

Tickets to hot concerts, such as the Taylor Swift's Eras

Tour or Beyonce's Renaissance world Tour, are often sold in

advance to members of an artist's fan club, or reserved for

agents, venues, promoters and others. But the DOJ said

Ticketmaster's exclusivity provisions prevent artists from

selling tickets directly to die hard fans and "fan clubs"

through pre-sale windows. Third parties often charge less than

Ticketmaster.

RESELLERS

Professional resellers snap up tickets to the hottest

concerts and drive up prices. One report by 404 Media found that

professional ticket buyers set up multiple accounts tied to

different email addresses and credit cards, and even use

specialized browsers, to purchase tickets through advance sales

and circumvent the safeguards Ticketmaster put in place to foil

scalpers.

MARKET POWER

The Justice Department's lawsuit says Live Nation directly

manages more than 400 musical artists and controls around 60% of

concert promotions at major venues. It owns or controls more

than 265 concert venues in North America, and through

Ticketmaster controls roughly 80% or more of primary ticketing

for concerts at big venues.

"In the United States, where Ticketmaster has a higher

market share relative to other markets, Ticketmaster is able to

charge higher prices and impose higher fees not tied to higher

costs," the Justice department said.