Live Nation Entertainment reported Monday that its annual loss nearly tripled as concert attendance dropped.
The concert promoter and parent of Ticketmaster lost $228.4 million compared with a loss of $60.2 million a year ago.
While the company sold 11.4 million tickets to family events in 2010, slightly up from 2009, it lost ground in the other big categories. Ticket sales to concerts, for example, were off 10 percent to 63.4 million, sports tickets were down 1 percent to 22.1 million and the arts and theater category decreased 12 percent to 18.6 million.
Revenue on the year fell 9 percent to $5.1 billion.
In the fourth quarter, revenue slipped 2 percent to $1.2 billion and the company posted an operating loss of $80 million, up from an operating loss of $9 million a year earlier.
Chief executive Michael Rapino said that while the “macro-environment remains challenging,” he is encouraged by year-to-date ticket sales. The company has been dropping prices in order to encourage sellout crowds.
Rapino also called this year’s concert pipeline strong, with such acts as Bob Seger, Elton John, Glee, Jimmy Buffett, Lady Gaga, Rascal Flatts, Rod Stewart, Rush and Tim McGraw set to perform.
Shares of Live Nation rose a nickel to $10.63 but were down 2 percent after the closing bell when it released its financial report.
