Beatles Games?

Beatles seek help to join the video game revolution on the Financial Times
reports that representatives of Beatles are exploring the possibility of video
games based on the band's music. Like efforts at bringing the fab four's music
into the digital age on CDs and services like iTunes, the process has been
glacially deliberate, but apparently the new CEO at Apple Corps is having an
influence on this: The representatives have held discussions with both
Activision and MTV Games, the respective makers of the Guitar Hero and Rock Band
games, in which players strum along to favourite songs or form virtual bands.


A final deal would be worth several million dollars, according to a person
familiar with the talks, and could be reached in a matter of weeks. However, it
would have first to win the blessing of both Apple Corps, the company
established by the band to oversee its business interests, and EMI, the UK music
group that owns the Beatles master recordings. Both declined to comment.

The surviving Beatles and their heirs have been cautious about exploiting their
material on new platforms. They were slow to re-issue their albums on compact
disc.

In spite of repeated discussions, EMI and Apple Corps have yet to license
Beatles recordings for digital use, including for sale through Apple's iTunes
music store.

Apple Corps has become more active in recent months since Jeff Jones took over
as chief executive.

The company, whose board includes Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Olivia Harrison
and Yoko Ono Lennon, has allowed Beatles compositions to be used on American
Idol and in a Las Vegas show.


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