January 06, 2009, 11:06 AM — After years of legal squabbles with digital download services such as Apple's iTunes, the music of The Beatles can now be legally downloaded.
According to the NME, Norwegian podcasts - originally broadcast in 2001 featuring songs by The Beatles - are now available.
Under a new deal between Norwegian broadcasting company NRK and music rights holder TONO the podcasts, which feature spoken information (in Norwegian) about Beatles songs plus the songs themselves, are available to download from Nrk.no/podcast.
All 212 of The Beatles' recorded works will be featured in the podcast series, available throughout January.
The podcasts contain less then 70 percent music - a requirement outlined under the deal.
At the start of 2008, it was reported that the band's tracks had been licensed to an online retailer.
EMI is understood to be keen to make the moment happen, while McCartney then described the deal as all but done, though he didn't confirm a date for the release: "It's all happening soon," he said. "The whole thing is primed, ready to go."
Music industry analysis firm, MusicAlly, predicted that Beatles music would be made available first exclusively through Apple iTunes, possibly accompanied by a special edition 'Yellow Submarine' iPod.
