| TicketmasterTM was founded in 1978 by two University of Arizona computer students. It was a struggling with its annual income of one million dollars. Its biggest competitor was Ticketron bringing in a total of one hundred million dollars annually. It got its first big break in 1981 when they provided tickets for the Seattle Mariners. Fred Rosen entered the company in 1982 with the idea to increase service charges. This charge will allow TM to pay percentages to promoters and venues. By 1990 TM had nearly twice as many outlets as Ticketron and increased to six hundred million dollars in ticket sales annually. Ticketron was fading fast and in 1991 TM bought out its only competitor. This deal was approved by the United States Justice Department's Antitrust Division and second guessed ever since. |