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By Cynthia L. Webb washingtonpost.com Staff Writer
Wednesday, June 9, 2004; 9:25 AM
Leave it to the Beatles to start a revolution in the online music business: Representatives for the Fab Four reportedly are in talks with several companies to sell their music on the Internet.
If a deal comes to fruition, it could fuel lagging music sales and add appeal to paid online music services that people often criticize for lacking tunes by some of the world's most legendary musicians. Chief among those missing stars are the Beatles, whose surviving members have long resisted uploading their catalog to the Internet.
CNET's News.com was first out of the box with the story yesterday afternoon, quoting unnamed sources. "Representatives for The Beatles have spoken with numerous online music providers, ranging from small companies to Microsoft, which is planning to open an Internet music store this year. The Beatles' side is asking for a considerable sum in return for providing exclusive online distribution rights, perhaps for as long as a year or more," News.com reported, noting that online music services "are struggling to prove they can offer more music than a brick-and-mortar store, and the lack of songs by rock and roll's premier group -- whose breakup more than three decades ago and the subsequent deaths of two members have hardly hurt its popularity -- has been an oft-cited gap in their appeal."
• CNET's News.com: Beatles Catalog Headed For Digital Distribution?
The Financial Times quoted unnamed industry sources who said "negotiators representing the band have held talks with several technology companies about distributing the music over the internet. Such an agreement would mark an about-face for the band, whose surviving members are Sir Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr. Also, it will provide an important boost for the fledgling industry. Observers have often lamented that internet music services lack song catalogues that are large enough to coax online music fans away from illegal services such as Kazaa. The Beatles have long been the music industry's largest internet hold-out. 'If one of the world's most popular bands puts its music online, it sends a message to other hold-outs that this is the way to go,' said one industry insider."
The paper said the band's representatives are in talks with Microsoft and RealNetworks. Reuters noted "a particular emphasis on Microsoft Corp's MSN, which is expected to open an Internet music store late this summer, people familiar with the talks told Reuters. 'MSN is working very closely with the music industry to build a top-quality music service for consumers, which includes providing a wide selection of music, but has nothing specific to announce at this time' said a Microsoft spokesman,'" Reuters said. The "This Is London" Web site also reported the development and noted: "Until now the Beatles (or the two surviving members, Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr) have refused to release their back catalogue, but insiders say negotiations are taking place, with Microsoft's MSN the frontrunner."
CNET explained that a deal could come in many forms, including a Beatles-only music shopping site. (The band already has its own slick Web site, which links to official sites for Ringo Starr, Paul McCartney and the late George Harrison.) "But it may be some time before 'Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band' and 'Let it Be' are sold on Apple Computer's iTunes or on Napster. One idea being considered is a Beatles-branded store that would be the only place online where the group's music, videos and other multimedia products would be sold, sources said. The store could be operated by one of the existing online music services."
Reuters was among the few outlets to at least acknowledge an attempt to reach representatives for McCartney and Starr, though they aren't yet commenting on the reports. "Sources familiar with the matter said the current round of talks is being steered by the Beatles' representatives rather than their record label, EMI Group Plc. Representatives of the band's two surviving members, Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr, could not be immediately reached for comment... EMI owns the Beatles' master recordings and would be involved in any final agreement, the sources said. The label has been trying to urge the Beatles for years to grant permission to distribute their songs online," Reuters said.
• Reuters: Beatles Said to Be in Online Song Licensing Talks
CNET said: "Any exclusive deal--especially if the music is distributed in a proprietary copy-protected format from a company such as Apple or Microsoft--could spotlight the growing problem of the lack of interoperability between services, digital music formats and portable devices, analysts said." The same article also noted bad blood between Apple and the Beatles. "The long shadow of The Beatles has already touched the world of digital music. Apple Corps--the company formed by The Beatles in 1968 to manage their business interests--sued Apple Computer in a dispute over the use of the Apple name and logo after last year's release of the iTunes song store," the article said. The tech news site The Register picked up on CNET's reporting of a past Apple-Beatle tiff.
• The Register: Beatles Mull Online Store
Kill Your Radio?
Of course, there are Beatles tunes galore on the Internet already, courtesy of free online file-swapping sites. All that illegal music has led the Recording Industry Association of America to take a swipe against digital radio. "In documents and meetings at the Federal Communications Commission and in communications with other industry trade groups, the Recording Industry Association of America, which represents the major US labels, is attempting to convince the government of the need for copyright protection for sound recordings aired on digital radio. While the Recording Industry Association of America's campaign has been largely behind the scenes, the association will take a higher profile on the issue this week as its CEO and chairman, Mitch Bainwol, hopes to make it a focus of a hearing scheduled on copyright issues facing webcasters. The association also plans to file formal comments with the commission on a need for digital radio copy protections, when final comments on issues surrounding the technology are due June 16," the Hollywood Reporter reported.
• Hollywood Reporter via The Boston Globe: Record Industry Eyes Digital Radio Piracy Safeguards
