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ivan@stellysee.de
| From | <mrmadler@mc.net> |
| Subject | The Beatles coming to iTunes |
| Date | Mon, 15 Nov 2010 18:45:10 -0600 |
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From the Wall Street Journal:
Steve Jobs is nearing the end of his
long and winding pursuit of the Beatles catalog. Apple [1] Inc. is
preparing to announce that its iTunes Store will soon start carrying music
by the Beatles, according to people familiar with the situation, a move
that would fill in a glaring gap in the collection of the world's largest
music retailer.
The deal resulted from talks that were taking place
as recently as last week among executives of Apple, representatives of the
Beatles and their record label, EMI Group Ltd,, according to these people.
These people cautioned that Apple could change plans at the last minute.
Spokesmen for Apple, EMI and Paul McCartney declined to comment.
Apple
on Monday posted a notice on the home page of its iTunes Store that it
would make "an exciting announcement" Tuesday morning.
The agreement
would represent a watershed in a fraught, decades-long relationship between
two of the biggest icons in their respective fields.
The two sides have
traded lawsuits since 1978, when the Beatles alleged that the computer
maker, then known as Apple Computer, infringed on the band's trademark.
That's because the Beatles in 1968 created a wholly owned entity called
Apple Corps Ltd., that acted as an arts-promotion company and owned Apple
Records. Though EMI retained ownership of the Beatles recordings, the Apple
logo was printed on their albums.
Terms of the deal that brought the
Beatles music to iTunes could not be learned. EMI has been under financial
strain following an ill-timed leveraged buyout by Terra Firma Capital
Partners LP in 2007. If the deal generates significant sales, it could
delay breaches in the company's loan covenants.
The Fab Four's arrival in
the digital age comes late compared to most other major acts', and may
generate more symbolism than sales. The group was similarly a latecomer to
the CD era, waiting until 1987 to issue their main body of work on the
medium that most embraced in the early to mid part of the decade. Their
music was held back again until 2009 before remastered CDs were issued with
improved sound quality, something for which fans had been clamoring for
years.
Read more:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703326204575617004052395816.html#ixzz15Oxz1Z4J
[2]
Links:
------
[1]
http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=aapl
[2]
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703326204575617004052395816.html#ixzz15Oxz1Z4J
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