BlueBeat sells Beatles tracks for 25 cents

BlueBeat, a California-based company, lets users purchase tracks for just 25 cents each through PayPal. It also lets users stream music for free.

It might be good news for music fans, but it isn’t for the Beatles or for their record company because BlueBeat is also selling The Beatles’ catalog as downloads. Why you ask? Coz the tracks are not even for sale yet.

A spokeswoman for the Beatles’ label, Apple Corp, Ltd., told Wired.com she doesn’t think BlueBeat has any permission to sell these tracks.

The Telegraph reports that a spokesperson from EMI, which with Apple Corp distributes the band’s music, said that it had not given its permission to be sold and was “looking into” the situation.

Media Rights Technologies (MRT), owner of BlueBeat, has not responded to any inquiries yet.

In the site’s Terms of Use however, the company pretty much makes it clear what they stand for.

If you believe in good faith that materials hosted by BlueBeat infringe your copyright (for example, materials posted by BlueBeat on one of our Forums), you (or your agent) may send us a notice requesting that the material be removed, or access to it blocked.

and

We suggest that you consult your legal advisor before filing a notice or counter-notice. Also, be aware that there can be penalties for false claims under the DMCA.

In other words, we’re going to sell what we want for however much we want. If you have a problem with it, file a DMCA takedown notice. But you’d better have a good lawyer, because otherwise you’re going to be in big trouble.

Source: http://tech.yahoo.com/news/macworld/20091031/tc_macworld/bluebeatsellsbeatlesmp3spermissionbedamned