Live Nation, which operates the Ticketmaster platform, has been determined to be a monopoly . A federal jury handed down its decision today that the company violated federal and state antitrust rules. This finding won't surprise anyone who has used Ticketmaster and been sticker-shocked by their final bill. However, it's unclear what the jury’s decision will mean in practice. For starters, the judge overseeing the case hasn't determined what remedies will be applied. The actions could go as far as requiring Live Nation to sell off Ticketmaster. There are also monetary damages to be awarded, which haven't been set yet. And whatever the judge decides, it's likely that Live Nation will appeal the decision. In a statement released by Live Nation today, the company noted that there are other motions still pending that could also impact the jury's ruling. "Of course, Live Nation can and will appeal any unfavorable rulings on these motions," it said. The Department of Justice and a group of state and district attorneys general sued Live Nation on monopoly claims in 2024. The government agency reached a settlement with Live Nation last month, but the other parties continued their action. There's also a separate case being waged by the Federal Trade Commission questioning whether Live Nation colluded with ticket resellers . Update, April 15, 2025, 6:31PM ET: Added statement from Live Nation. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/music/federal-jury-finds-concert-business-live-nation-is-a-monopoly-203924011.html?src=rss
A group of researchers from across the US and the UK have conducted a study on what AI does to our brains and the results are, in a word, grim. These results were published in a paper called "AI assistance reduces persistence and hurts independent performance" which kind of tells you everything you need to know. “We find that AI assistance improves immediate performance, but it comes at a heavy cognitive cost,” the study declares. Researchers went on to state that just ten minutes of using AI made people dependent on the technology, which led to worsening performance and burnout once the tools were removed. The study followed people who use AI for "reasoning-intensive" cognitive labor. This refers to stuff like writing, coding and brainstorming new ideas, which are some of the most common use cases. The researchers recruited 350 Americans, who were asked to complete some fraction-based equations. Half of the participants were randomly granted access to a specialized chatbot built on OpenAI's GPT-5 for help and the others had to go it alone. Halfway through the exam, the AI group had their access cut off. This led to a steep decline in correct answers by the AI group and many instances of people simply giving up. This result, in which performance and perseverance both dropped, was repeated in a larger experiment with 670 people. Finally, the scientists performed one final experiment with reading comprehension questions, and not math. The results were more of the same. “Once the AI is taken away from people, it’s not that people are just giving wrong answers. They’re also not willing to try without AI," Rachit Dubey, an assistant professor at the University of California and coauthor of the study, told Futurism . "People’s persistence drops." Dubey went on to warn that rapid deployment of AI in the education sector could lead to a "generation of learners and people who will not know what they’re capable of, and then that will really dilute human innovation and creativity." The study likens using the technology to the "boiling frog" effect , in which "sustained AI use erodes the motivation and persistence that drive long-term learning." These effects accumulate and "by the time they are visible, they will be difficult to reverse." A recent study found that chatbots affected people’s critical thinking performance differently depending on how users engaged with the bots. https://t.co/IBbLLqrNdG — Science News (@ScienceNews) April 15, 2026 There are two caveats here. The study has yet to be peer-reviewed. Also, researchers found one tiny bright spot regarding the use of AI. People who used AI tools for hints and clarification had a much easier time once the chatbot was removed when compared to those who used the bot to essentially prompt the answers. This is just the latest study trying to get to the bottom of what AI is doing to our collective noggins. It has been found to increase fatigue among full-time workers who rely on the tools, which led to the term "AI brain fry." To that end, researchers discovered that employees who use AI actually end up working harder and longer than those old-fashioned luddites. The results are even starker in the world of education. Studies have found that AI use in school leads to poor social and intellectual development and that kids who rely on chatbots tend to do worse on tests . This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/theres-yet-another-study-about-how-bad-ai-is-for-our-brains-183418494.html?src=rss
Live Nation-Ticketmaster is an illegal monopolist, a Manhattan jury found, according to Bloomberg. The jury found the company liable on three counts: illegally monopolizing the market for live event ticketing, amphitheaters, and tying its concert promotions business with the use of its venues, Bloomberg reported. The verdict, reached after several days of deliberation, leaves the […]
