Post by lenmac on Sept 1, 2006 16:03:26 GMT -5
The surviving Beatles, Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr, along with John
Lennon's widow Yoko Ono, the estate of the late George Harrison and the Beatles'
company Apple Corps, were Wednesday cleared to proceed with the U.S. arm of
the litigation by a judge at the New York State Supreme Court.
The Beatles are suing for damages and lost royalties of 30 million pounds
($57 million) in total, and seeking to reclaim rights to all the band's master
recordings, the Beatles' Britain lawyer told Dow Jones Newswires Thursday.
In December 2005, The Beatles sued EMI and Capitol Records in North America
to reclaim unpaid U.S. royalties, and EMI in London to reclaim royalties for
the rest of the world.
A key part of the suit is a claim for damages relating to CDs and records
which EMI claims were "scrapped", but the group is pursuing EMI for unpaid
royalties relating to the products, which it believes were either sold or given
away, Nicholas Valner, The Beatles' lawyer, said. The U.S. claims amount to
approximately 20 million pounds ($38 million) Valner said.
He said The Beatles were also seeking the return of master recordings, on
the grounds that EMI and Capitol "can't be trusted with the masters any more
and they should be returned to The Beatles". EMI currently owns copyright to
The Beatles' recordings.
"Artists from time to time seek audits on their accounts," an EMI
spokeswoman said. "We are not unhappy with that and are happy to have full financial
transparency. There are sometimes differences of opinion, especially when
contracts are so complex and there may be issues of contractual interpretation. In
these situations the parties may resort to the courts or mediation."
The Beatles and EMI were locked in a decade-long legal dispute during the
1980s after the group's surviving members accused the company of improper
accounting. The case was resolved in 1989.
Its interesting to me that they want the master recordings back that EMI/Capitol cant be trusted with them. Why?
Lennon's widow Yoko Ono, the estate of the late George Harrison and the Beatles'
company Apple Corps, were Wednesday cleared to proceed with the U.S. arm of
the litigation by a judge at the New York State Supreme Court.
The Beatles are suing for damages and lost royalties of 30 million pounds
($57 million) in total, and seeking to reclaim rights to all the band's master
recordings, the Beatles' Britain lawyer told Dow Jones Newswires Thursday.
In December 2005, The Beatles sued EMI and Capitol Records in North America
to reclaim unpaid U.S. royalties, and EMI in London to reclaim royalties for
the rest of the world.
A key part of the suit is a claim for damages relating to CDs and records
which EMI claims were "scrapped", but the group is pursuing EMI for unpaid
royalties relating to the products, which it believes were either sold or given
away, Nicholas Valner, The Beatles' lawyer, said. The U.S. claims amount to
approximately 20 million pounds ($38 million) Valner said.
He said The Beatles were also seeking the return of master recordings, on
the grounds that EMI and Capitol "can't be trusted with the masters any more
and they should be returned to The Beatles". EMI currently owns copyright to
The Beatles' recordings.
"Artists from time to time seek audits on their accounts," an EMI
spokeswoman said. "We are not unhappy with that and are happy to have full financial
transparency. There are sometimes differences of opinion, especially when
contracts are so complex and there may be issues of contractual interpretation. In
these situations the parties may resort to the courts or mediation."
The Beatles and EMI were locked in a decade-long legal dispute during the
1980s after the group's surviving members accused the company of improper
accounting. The case was resolved in 1989.
Its interesting to me that they want the master recordings back that EMI/Capitol cant be trusted with them. Why?
