Belgian Competition Authority clears Live Nation/Pukkelpop case
Live Nation will retain ownership of Pukkelpop, but the Belgian festival will operate independently for at least ten years under commitments agreed with the Belgian Competition Authority.
The Belgian Competition Authority (BCA) has closed its proceedings into Live Nation’s acquisition of Pukkelpop after the company agreed to commitments designed to preserve the Belgian festival’s operational independence for at least ten years.
Under the commitments, Live Nation will retain formal ownership of Pukkelpop, while the full operation of the festival and its related assets will be transferred to an organisation controlled by Pukkelpop founder Chokri Mahassine.
The operator will have independent control over artistic, commercial and operational decisions, including artist and booking-agent selection, programming, ticket pricing, suppliers, staffing, venue, dates, capacity and production.
The operating rights may also be transferred to an independent third party. Pukkelpop will be able to purchase individual services from Live Nation, but only on market terms and on a non-exclusive basis.
The commitments will remain in place for ten years and can be extended for an additional five years if market conditions warrant it. Their implementation will be overseen by an independent monitoring trustee.
Competition investigation
The BCA opened its investigation in November 2025 following an instruction from Belgium’s Vice-Prime Minister and Minister for Economic Affairs, David Clarinval.
The acquisition did not meet the Belgian turnover thresholds requiring a standard merger-control notification. Instead, the authority investigated the transaction under competition rules concerning potential restrictions of competition and abuse of dominant position.
The investigation examined the possible impact of further consolidation in Belgium’s large-scale festival market, where Live Nation already operates festivals including Rock Werchter and Graspop Metal Meeting.
The BCA also considered Live Nation’s position elsewhere in the live music value chain, including artist booking services, and examined whether the transaction could affect competing festivals’ access to artists or competing booking agencies’ access to festivals.
According to the authority, a large number of live music industry participants submitted information during the investigation.
Following the investigation, Live Nation proposed commitments establishing structural separation between Pukkelpop’s operations and the rest of its Belgian activities.
The BCA said the commitments were sufficient to address its preliminary competition concerns and has made them legally binding on Live Nation.
The authority stressed that its decision does not constitute a finding that Live Nation infringed competition law.
BCA Prosecutor General Damien Gérard said:
“Today’s decision preserves diversity and independence within the Belgian festival scene by allowing Pukkelpop to continue operating as a distinct festival with its own artistic identity and organizational autonomy. The BCA is grateful for the many contributions to its investigation by a broad variety of industry participants and remains at their disposal in the future.”
The BCA said it will continue to monitor developments in Belgium’s live music and entertainment sector.