With the events scene approaching eight full months of limited activity, the absence of live music has been felt pervasively. Released November 5, Live Nation‘s latest earning report reflects the landscape accordingly, with the major player reporting a 95 percent drop in the third quarter of 2020 compared with the third quarter of 2019.
The total loss clocks in at $319 million, encompassing $173 million for the concert business and $142 million for ticketing. Live Nation’s third quarter revenue also dropped a staggering amount, from more than $3 billion in 2019 to $154 million in 2020. The promotion and ticketing giant experienced a similarly drastic outcome in the second quarter of this year—reporting a 98 percent revenue loss during a quarter that typically brought booming festival business.
Despite significant hits to its profits, Live Nation remains optimistic that concerts will return full-scale in an outdoor fashion during summer 2021 and has begun preparations accordingly. The company is currently in the process of developing protocols for live shows; this includes refining social distancing and contact tracing tools like SmartEvent technology and SafeTix.
H/T: Rolling Stone
Featured image: Getty Images
