BEVERLY HILLS, Calif., July 26, 2019 /PRNewswire/ — Live Nation Entertainment, the world’s leading live entertainment company, has been selected by PEOPLE as one of the top 50 U.S. "Companies That Care." The publication’s annual ranking spotlights companies that have succeeded in business while also demonstrating respect, compassion, and concern for their communities, their employees, and the environment.

Live Nation is proud to be recognized for its suite of employee benefits, as well as its dedication to veterans, gender equity, the LGBTQ community, and sustainability. As the global leader in live entertainment, Live Nation strives to set new standards for the music and entertainment industries and was proud to represent as the only company honored from either industry.

Live Nation’s employee benefits suite, called "Taking Care of Our Own," features programs that aim to help employees lead more balanced and fulfilled lives with holistic support themes including: taking care of yourself, taking care of your family, taking care of your health, taking care of your wealth, taking care of your career, and taking care of others. Overall, these initiatives are designed to meet employees where they are, and employees are asked to propose new program ideas to ensure the company is addressing the things its staff cares about most. 

In addition to standard benefits like healthcare, 401k matching, and vacation time, some of the Live Nation’s standout programs include:

• Mindful Nation, an on-going series of weekly meditation sessions hosted in 30+ global offices
• Personal healthcare concierge and virtual medical consultations
• 6-months paid parental leave & a baby bonus
• 6-month sabbatical
• Student loan repayment assistance
• Egg freezing and IVF coverage
• 5 paid days off to volunteer every year
• 5 paid days off to care for sick family members every year
• Gender reassignment support
• Kid Nation, Live Nation’s take on annual "bring your child to work day" that turns the company’s offices and venues into a kid-friendly festival for the day
• Green Nation, Live Nation’s industry-leading global sustainability charter
• Hero Nation, a resource group that provides support for veteran employees, focuses veteran hiring initiatives, and outreach in the vet community including $75 million in tickets donated to the non-profit Vet Tix
• Adoption and surrogacy support
• LYV stock purchase program
• Dog-friendly offices
• Pet insurance

"Our people are the heart and soul of our company, and my top priority is making sure Live Nation is a great place for them to work," said Michael Rapino, Live Nation Entertainment, CEO and President. "It’s a team effort to continue raising the bar for our business and our benefits and I’d like to thank all the Live Nation employees that continue to share their thoughts and ideas with me every day."

PEOPLE once again partnered with global workplace culture authority Great Place to Work to identify the top U.S. companies that best fit the criteria.  Live Nation Entertainment has been certified as a Great Place to Work since 2016, which is a testament to how its leaders and employees work together in tandem to elevate business and culture priorities, while implementing programs that will make a tangible difference.

Michael Bush, CEO of Great Place to Work, adds, "Leaders’ abilities to show up with genuine care and respect is at the core of any great workplace. Employees at this year’s 50 Companies That Care are exceptionally proud of the positive impact their organizations have on their people, communities and the wider world."

Live Nation, in addition to the 49 other companies that made the list, will be featured in the August 5^th, 2019 issue of PEOPLE, which hits newsstands nationwide on Friday, July 26. See Live Nation’s feature here, or read more company stories and view the full list at: people.com/50companiesthatcare.

To identify the "50 Companies That Care," PEOPLE partnered with Great Place to Work to produce the list using the research firm’s extensive database and inside knowledge of outstanding workplaces around the globe.  Rankings are based on surveys representing over 4.5 million employees’ experiences of how their workplaces have made a difference in their lives and their communities. Rankings also reflect Great Place to Work’s assessment of the generosity of each organization’s benefits, philanthropic and community support, with a focus on activities occurring within the past year. 

#50CompaniesCare

ABOUT LIVE NATION ENTERTAINMENT
Live Nation Entertainment (NYSE: LYV) is the world’s leading live entertainment company comprised of global market leaders: Ticketmaster, Live Nation Concerts, Live Nation Advertising & Sponsorship and Artist Nation Management. For additional information, visit livenationentertainment.com.

ABOUT PEOPLE
Meredith Corporation’s PEOPLE revolutionized personality journalism when it launched as a weekly in 1974 with a mission to celebrate extraordinary people doing ordinary things and ordinary people doing extraordinary things.  Ubiquitous and still at the center of pop culture more than 40 years later, the PEOPLE brand is accessible across all media and platforms (print, digital, video, OTT, mobile, social) bringing more than 100 million consumers a unique mix of breaking entertainment news, exclusive photos, video, unparalleled access to the red carpet, celebrities, and in-depth reporting on the most compelling newsmakers of our time. An essential component of PEOPLE’s editorial vision remains human interest stories, which touch and often mirror the lives of our passionate audience. ComScore ranks the PEOPLE/Entertainment Weekly Digital Network No. 1 in the entertainment news category.  And now, the PeopleTV app offers a free, advertiser-supported OTT streaming video service.  PEOPLE is an award-winning 24/7 news organization headquartered in NYC with reporters worldwide. For more information visit PEOPLE.com and follow @people on Twitter and Instagram, @peoplemag on Facebook, and the PEOPLE channel on YouTube and on Snapchat’s Discover

ABOUT GREAT PLACE TO WORK
Great Place to Work® is the global authority on workplace culture. It helps organizations quantify their culture and produce better business results by creating a high-trust work experience for all employees. Emprising®, its culture management platform, empowers leaders with the surveys, real-time reporting, and insights they need to make data-driven people decisions. The company uses its unparalleled benchmark data to recognize Great Place to Work-Certified™ companies and the Best Workplaces in the U.S. and more than 60 other countries, including Fortune‘s annual list of the 100 Best Companies to Work For. 

To learn more, visit greatplacetowork.com, listen to the podcast Better by Great Place to Work, and read "A Great Place to Work for All." Join the community on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram.

Contacts

Live Nation: Kaitlyn Henrich: 424-303-6031, [email protected] OR PEOPLE: Julie Farin, Marnie Perez: 212-522-6300, [email protected] OR Great Place to Work: Kim Peters: 415-844-2574, [email protected]

Highlights (year-over-year):

• Revenue Up 10% for the Quarter to $3.2 Billion
• Operating Income Up 27% for the Quarter to $172 Million
• Adjusted Operating Income Up 23% for the Quarter to $319 Million
• 73 Million Concert Tickets Sold for 2019 Shows, Up Over 4 Million through mid-July
• Sponsorship & Advertising Committed Net Revenue Up 18% Year-to-Date
• Ticketmaster Fee-Bearing GTV Up 11% for the Quarter

LOS ANGELES, July 25, 2019 /PRNewswire/ — Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. (NYSE: LYV) today released financial results for the three and six months ended June 30, 2019.

The company delivered strong growth for the quarter, with operating income up 27%, adjusted operating income ("AOI") up 23%, and revenue up 10%. Each of our businesses contributed to these results, with all of them delivering double-digit operating income and AOI growth in the second quarter.

We continue to benefit from a strong tailwind in the live event, experience-based economy of today. The global ticket revenue from our concerts is up 16% for the first half of the year, as we continue to see a strong supply of artists touring matched with global consumer demand. And within this, the ticket revenue from concerts outside our top 100 artists is up 32% so far this year, demonstrating that the demand for live music is strong and growing from the largest stadiums to the local clubs.

We have created the most scalable and unparalleled business model in the industry, building a platform that brings over 570 million fans in 45 countries to live events each year. With our key metrics in concerts, sponsorship and ticketing all pacing well ahead of last year, we are confident that in 2019 the company will again deliver double-digit operating income and AOI growth.

Concerts Growing Fanbase

Starting with our concerts business, through mid-July we have sold over 73 million tickets for shows this year, up 6% or approximately 4.5 million tickets from the same point last year. This puts us on track to have nearly 100 million fans attend approximately 38,000 concerts this year.

In the second quarter, we had 27 million fans attend 10,000 shows, up 7% and 9%, respectively, from last year, and by far our largest second quarter ever. As a result, for the quarter we grew operating income by 45%, AOI by 33% and revenue by 11%. Our international business has been particularly strong through the first half, growing our fan base by 2.5 million fans with the greatest growth coming from our arenas, stadiums and theaters.

Globally, we continue to work with artists to enable them to capture the value from their shows – through optimized pricing and Ticketmaster tools such as Platinum, we have delivered over $500 million in incremental value to artists since the start of 2018. Through this, we have seen no reduction in demand, with global sell-through rates across our stadiums, arenas and amphitheaters as strong as last year.

Further, at our venues we continue to increase average per fan spending by enhancing the fan experience, providing reasons for them to arrive earlier, spending less time in line and improving the quality of food and beverage offerings. As a result, we currently expect our ancillary revenue per fan at our amphitheaters to grow by approximately $2.50 this year.

Overall, we see tremendous opportunity to continue growing our global market share, both organically and via targeted acquisitions. Our just announced acquisition of OCESA in Mexico, one of the top global promoters, continues our mission of building a global fan base to over 125 million fans.

All this gives me confidence that we will again deliver double-digit operating income and AOI growth in our concerts business this year.

Sponsorship & Advertising Connecting Brands With Fans

Our sponsorship business leverages our platform of nearly 100 million fans, providing brands a unique opportunity to connect directly with music fans at scale. By continuing to attract new brand partners and expand relationships with existing ones, we grew operating income by 14%, AOI by 12% and revenue by 8% for the quarter.

Much of our growth continues to come from large strategic partnerships, all of whom utilize a mix of our assets and span multiple years. This group accounts for over 70% of our total sponsorship, and the number of these sponsors has grown double-digits this year as we have added companies such as Adobe, Hyundai and Google. As a result, the committed spend by these strategic sponsors is also up double-digits through mid-July.

Globally, festivals in particular provide an attractive opportunity for sponsors to engage fans at a time when they are receptive to brand messages.  And once again, our festival sponsorship is on track for revenue per fan to be up double-digits this year, thanks in part to a growing portfolio of marquee festivals including Lollapalooza, Rock in Rio and EDC, which are of particular interest to brand partners.

Given the attractiveness of our platform to brands, and the double-digit growth in committed net revenue for the year, we currently expect to deliver sponsorship operating income and AOI growth in the mid-to-high teens for the full year.

Ticketmaster Leading the Market in Digital Transformation

Ticketmaster continues to demonstrate that it is the best global ticketing marketplace for venues, teams, artists and fans, with fee-bearing gross transaction value ("GTV") growth of 13% at constant currency in the quarter, making it our highest second quarter GTV ever. As a result, Ticketmaster’s operating income was up 31%, AOI was up 20% and revenue was up 6% for the quarter.

The addition of major clients such as Evenko in Canada, Chase Center in the U.S., the O2 in Prague, and 150 others worldwide further validates that Ticketmaster is content’s choice as the most effective ticketing platform in the world, with leading technology to service venues, sports teams and artists, and with an efficient marketplace that attracts and converts ticket buyers. Our industry-leading digital ticketing rollout is ahead of schedule, with Presence now expected to be installed at over 600 venues in the U.S. this year, including over 80% of major sports buildings and Live Nation amphitheaters.

And as the ticket is increasingly digital, we have also focused on ensuring our mobile marketplaces are the easiest place for fans to buy and manage their tickets. Because of that, we have seen a continued shift to mobile ticket buying, up 22% from the second quarter last year and now accounting for 45% of global ticket sales year to date. At the same time, we have been improving the consumer purchase process, which has increased conversion across both mobile and desktop.

As Ticketmaster continues to be an effective and efficient ticketing solution for content and fans alike, we expect to drive growth in GTV and operating results for the full year.

Summary

In summary, 2019 is on track for the company to deliver double-digit operating income and AOI growth along with strong gains in revenue.

Each of our businesses is contributing to this success, starting with concerts as we put on more shows for more fans, then continuing to monetize fans at the concert, sell more tickets to events of all types, and further deliver value to our sponsors from our platform of nearly 100 million fans.

Michael Rapino
President and Chief Executive Officer
Live Nation Entertainment, Inc.

The company will webcast a teleconference today at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time to discuss its financial performance, operational matters and potentially other material developments. Interested parties should visit the "News / Events" section of the company’s website at investors.livenationentertainment.com to listen to the webcast.  Supplemental statistical and financial information to be provided on the call, if any, will be posted to the "Financial Info" section of the website. A replay of the webcast will also be available on the Live Nation website.

Notice Regarding Financial Statements

The company has provided certain financial statements at the end of this press release for reference.  These financial statements should be read in conjunction with the full financial statements, and the notes thereto, set forth in the company’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission today and available on the SEC’s website at sec.gov.

About Live Nation Entertainment:

Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. (NYSE: LYV) is the world’s leading live entertainment company comprised of global market leaders: Ticketmaster, Live Nation Concerts, and Live Nation Media & Sponsorship.  For additional information, visit investors.livenationentertainment.com.

• As of June 30, 2019, total cash and cash equivalents were $2.3 billion, which includes $777 million in ticketing client cash and $363 million in free cash.
• Event-related deferred revenue was $1.6 billion at each of June 30, 2019 and 2018.
• For the quarter ended June 30, 2019, net cash used in operating activities was $176 million and free cash flow — adjusted was $220 million.
• We currently expect capital expenditures for the full year to be approximately $310 million, with more than half to be revenue generating capital expenditures.
• We currently expect the amortization of non-recoupable ticketing contract advances for the full year 2019 to be in line with the last few years of expense.

Reconciliation of Certain Non-GAAP Measures to Their Most Directly Comparable GAAP Measures (Unaudited)

Reconciliation of Free Cash Flow — Adjusted to Net Cash Provided by (Used in) Operating Activities

Reconciliation of Free Cash to Cash and Cash Equivalents

Forward-Looking Statements, Non-GAAP Financial Measures and Reconciliations:

Certain statements in this press release constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding anticipated double-digit operating income and adjusted operating income growth with strong gains in revenue for the company in 2019, including double-digit operating income and adjusted operating income growth in the company’s concerts business, operating income and adjusted operating income growth in the mid-to-high teens for sponsorship, and growth in gross transaction value and operating results for Ticketmaster; projected attendance at the company’s concerts of nearly 100 million fans with approximately 38,000 events in 2019; expectations that ancillary revenue per fan at the company’s amphitheaters will grow by approximately $2.50 for the year; the strength of the opportunity for the company to continue growing its global concerts market share, both organically and via targeted acquisitions; anticipated double-digit growth in festival sponsorship revenue per fan for the year; and the expectation that Presence will be installed at over 600 venues in the U.S. in 2019, including over 80% of major sports buildings and Live Nation amphitheaters. Live Nation wishes to caution you that there are some known and unknown factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, including but not limited to operational challenges in achieving strategic objectives and executing on the company’s plans, the risk that the company’s markets do not evolve as anticipated, the potential impact of any economic slowdown and operational challenges associated with selling tickets and staging events.

Adjusted Operating Income (Loss), or AOI, is a non-GAAP financial measure that the company defines as operating income (loss) before certain stock-based compensation expense, loss (gain) on disposal of operating assets, depreciation and amortization (including goodwill impairment), amortization of non-recoupable ticketing contract advances and acquisition expenses (including transaction costs, changes in the fair value of accrued acquisition-related contingent consideration obligations, and acquisition-related severance and compensation). The company uses AOI to evaluate the performance of our operating segments. The company believes that information about AOI assists investors by allowing them to evaluate changes in the operating results of our portfolio of businesses separate from non-operational factors that affect net income (loss), thus providing insights into both operations and the other factors that affect reported results.  AOI is not calculated or presented in accordance with GAAP.  A limitation of the use of AOI as a performance measure is that it does not reflect the periodic costs of certain amortizing assets used in generating revenue in our business.  Accordingly, AOI should be considered in addition to, and not as a substitute for, operating income (loss), net income (loss), and other measures of financial performance reported in accordance with GAAP.  Furthermore, this measure may vary among other companies; thus, AOI as presented herein may not be comparable to similarly titled measures of other companies.

Constant Currency is a non-GAAP financial measure. The company calculates currency impacts as the difference between current period activity translated using the current period’s currency exchange rates and the comparable prior period’s currency exchange rates. The company presents constant currency information to provide a framework for assessing how our underlying businesses performed excluding the effect of foreign currency rate fluctuations.

Free Cash Flow — Adjusted, or FCF, is a non-GAAP financial measure that the company defines as net cash provided by (used in) operating activities less changes in operating assets and liabilities, less maintenance capital expenditures, less distributions to noncontrolling interest partners. The company uses FCF among other measures, to evaluate the ability of its operations to generate cash that is available for purposes other than maintenance capital expenditures.  The company believes that information about FCF provides investors with an important perspective on the cash available to service debt, make acquisitions, and for revenue generating capital expenditures.  FCF is not calculated or presented in accordance with GAAP.  A limitation of the use of FCF as a performance measure is that it does not necessarily represent funds available for operations and is not necessarily a measure of the company’s ability to fund its cash needs.  Accordingly, FCF should be considered in addition to, and not as a substitute for, net cash provided by (used in) operating activities and other measures of financial performance reported in accordance with GAAP.  Furthermore, this measure may vary among other companies; thus, FCF as presented herein may not be comparable to similarly titled measures of other companies.

Free Cash is a non-GAAP financial measure that the company defines as cash and cash equivalents less ticketing-related client funds, less event-related deferred revenue, less accrued expenses due to artists and cash collected on behalf of others, plus event-related prepaids.  The company uses free cash as a proxy for how much cash it has available to, among other things, optionally repay debt balances, make acquisitions and fund revenue generating capital expenditures.  Free cash is not calculated or presented in accordance with GAAP.  A limitation of the use of free cash as a performance measure is that it does not necessarily represent funds available from operations and it is not necessarily a measure of our ability to fund our cash needs. Accordingly, free cash should be considered in addition to, and not as a substitute for, cash and cash equivalents and other measures of financial performance reported in accordance with GAAP.  Furthermore, this measure may vary among other companies; thus, free cash as presented herein may not be comparable to similarly titled measures of other companies.

Contacts

Investor Contact: Jackie Beato, (310) 867-7143, [email protected]; Media Contact: Carrie Davis, (310) 975-6941, [email protected]

PRAGUE, July 23, 2019 /PRNewswire/ — Ticketmaster Czech Republic (Ticketmaster Česká republika, a.s.), a live Nation Entertainment company, has become the official ticketing operator of O₂ arena Prague, as part of a new partnership announced today.

Operated and owned by Bestsport, O₂ arena Prague is one of the most modern, multi-purpose venues in Europe, hosting high profile concerts, sports fixtures and entertainment events with a total capacity of 18,000. Starting from this month, tickets for all upcoming events will be sold via Ticketmaster.

The partnership comes in a landmark year for O₂ arena Prague, in which it celebrates 15 years since opening and welcomed its 10 millionth visitor. In 2018 alone, it hosted concerts for Imagine Dragons, Metallica and Depeche Mode, as well as high profile sporting events including the tennis FED Cup Finals, the IFF World Floorball Championship and the gala show of showjumping Global Champions Prague Playoffs.

Simona Matějková, Managing Director of Ticketmaster Czech Republic, said: "Partnering with one of the country’s biggest and most innovative venues is hugely exciting for us and a significant moment in our development following our launch in the Czech Republic two years ago. As the O₂ arena Prague prepares to play host to some of the biggest names in music and sport in the coming months, we are looking forward to working with the venue and Bestsport to provide a simple and seamless experience for fans looking to buy tickets to some amazing events."

Robert Schaffer, Chairman of Board and the CEO of Bestsport company and O₂ arena Prague, said: "As one of the most recognised global ticketing platforms, Ticketmaster was a natural choice for us and our partnership will create many fantastic opportunities. Ticketmaster’s market-leading technology will help to simplify the process of selling tickets to fans at home and abroad and opens up new possibilities in terms of promotion and exposure of the many exciting events we host at the O₂ arena Prague to audiences around the world."

Ticketmaster has already begun working with Bestsport selling tickets for events hosted at the brand new O₂ universum, the O₂ arena multi-purpose next door neighbour, due to open in September 2019. This venue will provide additional space for sports events and concerts, as well as operating as a perfect spot for international congresses and corporate events with its largest hall accommodating up to 4,500 visitors and overall capacity of 10,000 visitors using the space of all 21 halls. 

About Live Nation Entertainment:

Live Nation Entertainment (NYSE: LYV) is the world’s leading live entertainment company comprised of global market leaders: Ticketmaster, Live Nation Concerts, Live Nation Media & Sponsorship and Artist Nation Management. For additional information, visit www.livenationentertainment.com.

Contacts

Mel Perrett, 0207 9804 387, [email protected]

LOS ANGELES, July 22, 2019 /PRNewswire/ — Live Nation Entertainment, the world’s leading live entertainment company, today announced that it will continue to grow its operations in Nashville by hiring seasoned executive Sally Williams as President of Nashville Music and Business Strategy. Beginning September 2019 and reporting to President of US Concerts, Bob Roux, Williams will play an integral part of Live Nation’s continued growth in Music City. 

As President of Nashville Music and Business Strategy, Williams will drive Live Nation’s overall business and entertainment strategy in the market, including venue and client development.  She will lead the company’s overall efforts in the programming and marketing of Live Nation’s concert activity in the greater Nashville market, and collaborate with Nashville-based artists to develop and execute their vision on a world-wide basis.  Williams will also oversee operations of Live Nation’s existing portfolio of Nashville venues, including Ascend Amphitheater, The Quarry and The Brooklyn Bowl, while also leading efforts in the development of new venues. 

"Sally is a Nashville music industry icon, and the perfect executive to oversee Live Nation’s growing footprint in Nashville," said Roux. "She’s spent decades contributing to the success of Nashville artists, venues, and events, and certainly the community itself, and we’re extremely fortunate to have someone with her industry knowledge and dedication to live music join our company." 

"For decades, Nashville has not only been my home, but also my passion," said Williams. "It’s been a privilege to be in the middle of such incredible growth and I’m excited about what’s on the horizon. Live Nation has built a strong business here and has a terrific team in place. It will be an honor to collaborate with them to create world class experiences for fans and artists here in Nashville and beyond."

Sally will join Live Nation following nearly 20 years at Ryman Hospitality Properties and Opry Entertainment Group. Since February 2017 she has served as the Senior Vice President of Programming and Artist Relations, as well as General Manager of the Grand Ole Opry, overseeing booking, programming, artist relations, artist collaborations and show production across the group’s venues, including: Grand Ole Opry, Grand Ole Opry House, Ryman Auditorium and Ole Red.  Prior to that, Williams served as General Manager of Ryman Auditorium. During her tenure, the Ryman was consistently recognized with a multitude of awards and Williams herself garnered many accolades of her own, including Pollstar’s Facility Executive of the Year, Academy of Country Music’s Don Romeo Talent Buyer of the Year and Promoter of the year, the TJ Martell Frances Preston Outstanding Music Industry Achievement Award, and more.

Williams has served as a steward of many organizations throughout Nashville’s music community, including as Chairman of the Country Music Association, President of Leadership Music and President of the Opry Trust Fund. Currently she is serving as Co-chair of the Music City Music Council and as Marketing Chair for the Country Music Association board of directors. She also is a member of the Academy of Country Music, the Americana Music Association, the International Association of Venue Managers, and the International Entertainment Buyers Association.

Williams’s last day with Opry Entertainment will be August 9. Beginning September 9, she will be in Live Nation’s Nashville office and can be reached at 615-346-9000.

About Live Nation Entertainment
Live Nation Entertainment (NYSE: LYV) is the world’s leading live entertainment company comprised of global market leaders: Ticketmaster, Live Nation Concerts, and Live Nation Sponsorship. For additional information, visit www.livenationentertainment.com.

Contacts

Kaitlyn Henrich, [email protected]