Beatles to Release Re-mastered Catalog on $279 USB Drive

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 4, 2009 - 10:38am.

London - The Beatles' record label, Apple Corps, and EMI Music have announced plans to release a limited edition apple-shaped USB drive, containing the entire Beatles re-mastered catalog in FLAC and MP3 format. The 30,000 USB apples will become available on Dec. 7 in the U.K. and Dec. 8 in North America, with a price tag of $279.

In addition to the 14 re-mastered albums, the set will include 13 mini-documentary films about the studio albums, rare photos and expanded liner notes.

The Beatles have yet to make their lucrative catalog available for purchase from any online music retailer, such as iTunes or Amazon, although talks have been ongoing for years.

In related news, EMI has sued a Santa Cruz, Calif.-based website, BlueBeat, that is offering free streams and selling song downloads from the Beatles for 25 cents each, Wired.com reports.

Filed in federal court in Los Angeles, the suit targets BlueBeat Inc., BaseBeat Inc., Media Rights Technologies and Hank Risan, head of the companies.

http://snipurl.com/t26gw (Web store listing)

http://snipurl.com/t2759 (Wired.com)