Ticketmaster and Live Nation to merge?

The Wall Street Journal has reported that international ticketing giant Ticketmaster Entertainment Inc. and multi-sector entertainment company Live Nation Inc. are close to a merger.

If true, the deal that would consolidate two of the most powerful forces in the music industry in one company.

The combined company would be called Live Nation Ticketmaster, and would merge the world's biggest concert promoter with the world's dominant ticketing and artist-management company.

The Wall Street Journal suggested that the resulting firm would be able to manage everything from recorded music to ticket sales and tour sponsorship. It could package artists in new ways, for example, allowing corporations such as a cellphone provider to sponsor a concert.

Live Nation has served as an alternative to Ticketmaster for some time though the two companies had a sales partnership that expired at the end of 2008. Both companies have also brokered exclusive deals with various artists: Ticketmaster's ties to headliners like Christina Aguilera and The Eagles stem from its acquisition of artist rep firm Front Line Management, while Live Nation has signed on acts like Madonna and Jay-Z in its own right.