“Apple is close to signing an exclusive deal with The Beatles to put its music on iTunes, despite the troubled legal history between the two,” Rob Jones reports for Personal Computer World.
“If signed, this would be a major coup for Apple, as The Beatles have to date refused to let any online music store offer legal downloads of their songs,” Jones reports. “It could also see the end of legal wrangles stemming from the fact that the Beatles set up a company called Apple Corps, which pre-dates the computer company.”
Jones reports, “The Beatles’ music is among the most popular in the world for illegal downloads, so if a deal is struck, would generate huge revenues for Apple. It would also boost iPod sales as well as the number of downloads through iTunes.”
Jones reports, “According to Fortune, David Munns, head of EMI North America, has said the back catalogue would be available for legal downloads soon, and it is believed Apple exec Steve Jobs is close to getting a time-limited exclusive deal, preventing other music sites from initially being able to offer The Beatles songs online. Any deal struck with iTunes would be worth tens of millions of dollars, it said.”
Full article here.
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