LOS ANGELES – The lead singer of heavy metal band Black Sabbath has filed suit against a live entertainment company and its affiliates over the conditions required by artists who wish to perform at London's O2 Arena.
John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne, an individual, on his own behalf and for all others similarly situated, filed a complaint on March 21 in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California Western Division against Anschutz Entertainment Group Inc., AEG Presents LLC, L.A Arena Co. LLC, et al. over alleged violation of the Sherman Act.
According to the complaint, the plaintiff alleges that in January, his UK promoter, Live Nation UK LTD, sought to book the O2 Arena in London for Ozzy Osbourne's final world tour for a date in 2019. The suit states the arena was available but only on the condition that Osbourne be bound by the Staples Center Commitment, which states artists/musicians cannot play the O2 Arena unless they agree to play the Staples Center during part of their tours that takes place in Los Angeles.
The plaintiff alleges the defendants' imposition of the agreement is a violation of the Sherman Act.
"The Staples Center Commitment prevents promoters or other artist representatives from negotiating better terms at the available venues in greater Los Angeles and locks artists into performing at one venue when they would prefer to perform at another ... This restraint on promoters and representatives from negotiating better terms harms artists directly because it is typical in the industry for the artists to recover a fixed percentage of whatever deal their promoters or representatives are able to strike," the suit states.
The plaintiff requests a trial by jury and seeks injunction to stop the defendants' imposing or enforcing the Staples Center Commitment policy, award of attorney's fees, costs of suit incurred, and for any and all other relief as this court may deem proper and just. He is represented by Daniel M. Wall, Timothy L. O’Mara and Andrew M. Gass of Latham & Watkins LLP in San Francisco.
U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, Western Division case number 2:18-cv-02310-DSF-JEM