LIVE NATION To Pause All Tours Due To Coronavirus

BLABBERMOUTH.NET

According to Billboard, America's largest concert promoter and venue operator Live Nation is instructing its touring shows to prepare to return home in the wake of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. All Live Nation tours are affected, both domestically and internationally, through the end of the month. Live Nation will reportedly re-evaluate the situation at the beginning of April with the goal of resuming touring in May or June. Tours affected include those by KISS, TOOL and LYNYRD SKYNYRD. Since Friday, stock for Live Nation dropped approximately 30%, from $52.99 per share to $37.11. This is down almost 50% from last month when shares were trading at $72.89. Less than two weeks ago, Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino was downplaying coronavirus concerns, saying: "Most of our business doesn't start until the middle of June onwards. So the next few months, we'll have some cancellations, I assume, here and there in some arenas and clubs, but the heart of our business happens this summer." According to the Centers For Disease Control And Protection (CDC), coronavirus is thought to spread mainly from person-to-person — between people who are in close contact with one another (within about six feet), and through respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs or sneezes. These droplets can land in the mouths or noses of people who are nearby or possibly be inhaled into the lungs. The agency is recommending that people avoid "close contact" with anyone showing flu-like symptoms. The World Health Organization (WHO) officially declared the spread of the new coronavirus, which began in China in late December, a pandemic on Wednesday (March 11). More than 115,000 cases have been reported worldwide — including more than 1,000 in the U.S.