Sept 15 (Reuters) - The U.S. Federal Trade Commission is

investigating whether Live Nation's Ticketmaster is

doing enough to prevent bots from illegally reselling tickets on

its platform, Bloomberg News reported on Monday.

The probe, which examines the ticket-selling unit's

compliance with the Better Online Ticket Sales (BOTS) Act, is at

an advanced stage and a decision on whether to pursue a case

could come within weeks, Bloomberg said, citing people familiar

with the matter.

The 2016 law prohibits the use of bots and other methods to

bypass ticket purchase limits set by online sellers.

As part of the probe, FTC investigators are assessing

whether Ticketmaster has a financial incentive to allow

resellers to circumvent its ticket limit rules, according to the

report.

A settlement is also possible, Bloomberg reported. If the

FTC pursues a case and Live Nation loses, the company could face

billions of dollars in penalties, as the law permits fines of up

to $53,000 per violation.

The scrutiny, which began under former FTC Chair Lina

Khan's tenure, gained momentum during the Trump administration

and escalated following Taylor Swift's Eras tour ticketing

debacle in 2022, according to the report.

The FTC declined to comment, while Live Nation did not

immediately respond when contacted by Reuters.

In May, President Donald Trump signed an executive order

aimed at protecting fans from "exploitative ticket scalping" and

reforming the live entertainment ticketing industry.

Separately, the Justice Department and state attorneys

general sued Live Nation and Ticketmaster last year for

allegedly monopolizing the live concert industry in ways that

hurt artists and fans.

In August, the FTC sued ticket reseller Key Investment

Group, accusing it of evading purchase limits to acquire

thousands of tickets for events, including Swift's Eras tour,

and reselling them at inflated prices.