by , 7:00 PM EDT, September 20th, 2004
USA Today has delved into the Beatles vs. Apple lawsuit. While the article doesn't add much to the coverage from several sources last week, it does include some comment from industry watchers that may be of interest to Apple watchers.
The article's basic point is to rehash rumors that entertainment magazine Variety floated last week. The entertainment magazine reported that The Beatles and Apple were close to a settlement, and that industry speculation was that the settlement might include Sir Paul McCartney joining Apple's board of directors (see TMO's full coverage for more information on Variety's article and other background information on the lawsuit).
The article offers comment from a trademark specialist and a researcher for GartnerG2 on the case. From USA Today:
"It seems that Apple Computer's in a pretty tough spot, since they signed a prior settlement agreement," says Houston lawyer David O'Neil, a trademark specialist with O'Neil and McConnell. "That's why the settlement numbers are going to be so big. They promised to stay out of the music business, and they didn't."
O'Neil sees as natural any talks aimed at getting the Beatles catalog onto iTunes. Apple Corps is "in a perfect position to get the best price for their music," because it has the upper hand over Apple Computer "for violating their agreement."
Mike McGuire, research director for industry tracker GartnerG2, says the expected multimillion-dollar settlement "shows you what the stakes are in the digital music business."
In addition, USA Today throws some additional speculation into its coverage -- similar to speculation we raised in The Spin of last week's article -- that a settlement could include The Beatles licensing their catalog to Apple for the iTunes Music Store (iTMS).
On a minor note, we should also note a small mistake made i the article. USA Today says:
When Apple Computer began selling music software in 1989, Apple Corps again sued, and the settlement cost the computer company $26.5 million. Apple Computer agreed not to use the trademark in music-related activities. But Apple Corps filed suit again last year when the computer company launched its iTunes Music Store. (The URL www.applemusic.com takes users to an iTunes page.)
Apple was not selling "music software" in 1989, but rather Macs capable of playing music, and that was the source of renewed legal friction between the two companies at that time.
You can find more of USA Today's coverage at the newspaper's Web site.