Diller Leaving Live Nation

Live Nation Entertainment Chairman Barry Diller is resigning his position. Diller confirmed on Sept. 28 that he plans to leave the board of directors.

Diller’s motivation was unclear at press time, but the resignation is expected to take place at the next board meeting. He told board members that there is “no rush” to fill his position, according to Bloomberg, but said it was time for them to look for a new chairman.

Diller has reportedly clashed with other board members such as Live Nation Executive Chairman Irving Azoff and CEO Michael Rapino. The Wall Street Journal noted Diller chastised Rapino for the disastrous July investor conference; Rapino’s presentation was linked to an immediate stock plunge.

“I have always said, since the merger of Ticketmaster and Live Nation, that I only planned to stay as chairman through the transition and integration of the two companies,” Diller said in a statement to the board members, according to Bloomberg.

Azoff responded via Twitter to Diller’s decision and speculation as to why he left. A tweet from Azoff has become commonplace but it has been noted that it is an unusual first acknowledgement for a publicly traded company:

“As usual the press reports are ridiculous. It was always Barry Diller’s intention to step down from LNE COB during first year after TM/LN merger. I look forward to continue to work with him during his time on the board. I thank him for the many years of dedication and loyalty to everyone at TM.”

The New York Times didn’t buy into that, citing a source who “was not authorized to speak publicly.” That source said board members had already decided to seek removal of Diller if he did not decide to step down. Diller allegedly pushed for moves management resisted, including switching the company’s stock listing from NYSE to Nasdaq and removing Kathy Willard, the company’s chief financial officer.

But then there’s John Malone.

According to a person with knowledge of the situation, the resignation comes after a power struggle with the media giant who runs Liberty Media Corp, which owns 14.3 percent of LYV versus Diller’s less than 1.5 percent. There was growing resentment at the outsized role Diller was playing in running the company, the person said.

Malone and Diller’s personal dislike for each other also played a role in Diller’s resignation, the person said. Malone and Diller have gone to the courtroom to do battle over Diller’s Internet empire, IAC. Malone’s Liberty Media Corp. owned about 60 percent of the voting shares and Malone realized that when Diller planned to restructure the company it would dilute Malone’s value. Many have speculated Malone is now getting his payback.

“Barry f**ked Malone so Irving used Malone to f**k Barry,” commentator Bob Lefsetz eloquently put it. “Irving Azoff’s a charmer too (like Diller). And one of the few who can manipulate and backstab as well as Barry Diller. Although Irving’s more in the mold of Malone, he’s about business efficiency, closing, getting what he wants.”

Unlike Diller, who is always in the spotlight, Malone is known for living quietly in the mountains, directing his minions from his faraway perch. Still, Vanity Fair’s Michael Woolf called Malone “an exceptionally rich man who stalks and then tortures other exceptionally rich men.”

Sources have reportedly said Azoff is most likely to fill Diller’s role. It also happens that the next public speaking engagement for Azoff is at none other than Liberty Media’s investor/analyst meeting in New York Oct. 1.

Louis Shapiro, president of Shapiro Capital Management, a major Live Nation shareholder, told WSJ Diller’s resignation is “good news for shareholders.”

Meanwhile, Deadline Hollywood‘s Nikki Finke has weighed in:

“I don’t do music. (I have my hands full with the scoundrels in Hollywood that I can’t possibly take on the crooks in the music biz as well.),” Finke blogged Sept 29. “And I stopped caring about anything despotic and obnoxious Barry Diller did years ago.

“So does his resignation as chairman of the Live Nation Entertainment board now mean everyone else in showbiz can stop caring, too? I sure hope so. After all, he’s no longer a Hollywood honcho anymore. Plus, nobody wants to do business with him given his horrible track record of providing shareholder returns as CEO of IAC. And his long-ago ability to charm Wall Street is gone. Diller only makes money for Diller. So let’s all wash our hands of him.”