A Company in Transition
Pros
I see a lot of LN reviews here where the pros listed are the ability to attend free events. Trust me, as an employee of nearly 9yrs, employees getting good seats to events are few, and far between. There is a free "grass pass" to sit in the ($10) grass areas of our amphitheaters. There is a distinct opportunity for growth in certain areas of the company, and I can say my compensation is good currently - however, it's wildly inconsistent across other areas of the company (e.g. some get amazing bonuses, some nothing at all for doing like-jobs). If you want a major pro (for LN), they are a monopoly. Just try to attend a big name artist's show without purchasing the ticket from Ticketmaster, attending in an LN venue, and purchasing food & beverages, or merchandising where LN gets the lion's share. The artist is likely an LN-managed artist as well, perhaps even a 360 deal they've done, which are no different than the ones the labels did in the 80's and 90's, which brought down the music industry, and made it so only big artists could make a decent living in music. It is the only ticketing platform in the world that will likely not fall down during a high-volume on-sale like Bruce Springsteen, or The Police, so there is that.
Cons
As revenue rises, LN's profits have deepened sharply over the last few years. Any savvy investor should be able to deduce this. The company was once a fun place to work, we took calculated risks, which paid off. We ran things with an entrepreneurial spirit, almost as if we were a startup. We worked as dedicated teams, and relished going to work everyday. Now everything the company does is based on cost savings, and showing structure, almost as if they're readying the company for privatization, or a sale. I've witnessed spectacularly, talented people who helped get LN to where it is today either leave through attrition, or be eliminated over the course of the last few years. The CEO is unreliable to the employee base, new company benefits never transpire, or disappear as quietly as they're announced. There's zero focus on new, bleeding-edge technology plays, but rather a laser-focus on paperwork, and process. It's become unbearable for me to watch, so I'm exiting soon.
