Speaking at the launch of his new album, former Beatle Paul McCartney said the much anticipated Beatles/iTunes deal has unfortunately stalled.
Apple Inc, the Beatles holding company Apple Corps’, and record label EMI have not been able to reach an agreement that would bring the entire Beatles catalog to iTunes. The digital music store currently sells solo content from each one of the Beatles (John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr). And recently, Harmonix has managed to strike a deal that will allow them to develop a Beatles version of the Rock Band video game. So it’s clear that Apple Corps doesn’t have a particular notion towards disallowing digital music.
“The last word I got back was it’s stalled at the whole moment, the whole process,” McCartney explained. “I really hope it will happen because I think it should.” Attempting to rationalize the seemingly painful process, he continued “It’s between EMI and the Beatles, I think.”
An EMI spokeswoman said: “We have been working hard to secure agreement with Apple Corps. to make the Beatles’ legendary recording catalog available to fans in digital form. Unfortunately the various parties involved have been unable to reach agreement but we really hope everyone can make progress soon.”
A trademark dispute between both Apple branded companies was solved last year. Which leads McCartney himself to believe that the EMI (the record label), and The Beatles (Apple Corps’) aren’t able to come to an agreement. EMI owns the Beatles recordings, but would need Apple Corps permission to be able to release the music in new digital formats. This of course plays out worst of all for Beatles fans that happen to be iTunes users. It’s still unclear whether The Beatles library will be making its way to iTunes anytime soon.
