On March 31, 2025, President Trump signed an executive order (EO 14254) titled “Combating Unfair Practices in the Live Entertainment Market.” EO 14254 directs the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to, amongst other provisions,...more
President Donald Trump has issued "Combating Unfair Practices in the Live Entertainment Market," an executive order (EO) that calls on the U.S. Attorney General and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to enforce competition laws...more
The Pitch newsletter is a monthly update of legal issues and news affecting or related to the music, film and television, fine arts, media, professional athletics, eSports, and gaming industries. The Pitch features a diverse...more
This summer, the U.S. Department of Justice requested additional information on Alterra Mountain Co.'s planned acquisition of Arapahoe Basin, known as A-Basin, signaling the first DOJ challenge to a ski mountain merger in...more
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC or Commission) recently issued a final rule (the Junk Fees Rule or the Rule) banning so-called “junk fees” in two key industries: short-term lodging and live events. The Rule addresses...more
Last week, the Federal Trade Commission announced its final “Junk Fees Rule” (the “Rule”) that bans “mystery” or “junk fees” for live event tickets, hotels, and short-term rentals....more
Earlier this month, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced a final rule—dubbed the Junk Fees Rule—to address what it views as deceptive pricing practices that cause harm to consumers and that undercut other honest...more
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has finalized its long-anticipated Rule on Unfair or Deceptive Fees (Final Rule), targeting hidden mandatory fees and ensuring transparent pricing disclosures to consumers. Unlike the Notice...more
Warnings of an impending regulatory focus on hidden and junk fees materialized following President Joe Biden’s call to Congress during his 2023 State of the Union address to eliminate them. On December 17, the Federal Trade...more
The Federal Trade Commission has issued a long-anticipated final Rule on Unfair or Deceptive Fees (the Rule), colloquially known as the “Junk Fees” Rule, targeting mandatory hidden fees and ensuring transparent pricing...more
Our Consumer Protection/FTC Team breaks down the Federal Trade Commission’s final rule regulating live-event ticket and hotel pricing practices....more
On December 17, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) finalized its Trade Regulation Rule on Unfair or Deceptive Fees (16 CFR § 464), otherwise known as the "Junk Fees" Rule, targeting specific industries with a narrowed...more
On December 17, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced a new rule requiring “timely, transparent, and truthful” upfront disclosures of pricing information to consumers of: Live-event tickets, which is not defined...more
The FTC has finalized a new rule aimed at ensuring greater transparency for consumers regarding mandatory fees, also called “junk fees,” for live event tickets and short-term lodging....more
On December 17, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC or Commission) released its final Trade Regulation Rule on Unfair or Deceptive Fees, also called the “Junk Fees Rule” by the Commission. For companies involved in...more
Yesterday, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) finalized its “Rule on Unfair or Deceptive Fees” (Junk Fees Rule) designed, the FTC noted, to prohibit bait-and-switch pricing and mandate clear and conspicuous price disclosures...more
Never say never, but we are fairly confident that the newly announced Junk Fee Rule (Rule) will be the final final rule issued while Chair Khan is at the helm of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). ...more
Today, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced the release of its final Rule on Unfair or Deceptive Fees, also known as the “Junk Fee Rule”, which aims to address so-called bait-and-switch pricing tactics and other...more
This week, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued its long-awaited Final Rule on Unfair or Deceptive Fees. When the FTC released the proposed rule over a year ago, the rule covered any business that offered goods or...more
Recently, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a district court’s decision finding a delegation clause in an arbitration agreement to be both procedurally and substantively unconscionable and, moreover, that...more
In the long-awaited newest chapter of case law discussing the validity and enforceability of arbitration clauses and class action waivers, the Ninth Circuit on October 28, 2024, dealt a setback, though not a fatal blow, to...more
In Heckman v. Live Nation Entertainment, Inc., a panel of the Ninth Circuit affirmed a lower court decision refusing to enforce the Ticketmaster arbitration provision in a purported consumer antitrust class action brought...more
Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost’s office asked a federal judge on Thursday to intervene in a lawsuit filed by the Cleveland Browns to test the “Modell Law,” a state law designed to stop teams from leaving cities that...more
On October 28, 2024, the Ninth Circuit struck a mass arbitration agreement as unconscionable and unenforceable under California law in Heckman v. Live Nation Ent., Inc., No. 23-55770. The three-judge panel affirmed the...more