A few days ago, we found out that Apple Corps and EMI would finally release the Beatles' catalog in a digital format. It's not that we couldn't have just purchased CDs and ripped them—that's what everyone's been doing for years now—it's just that it felt like progress. In reality, it was just the near-random actions of someone who has no idea what's going on, at all. From the Guardian via Ars, Paul McCartney's view on selling the Beatles' music online:

I met [EMI's chief executive] on a plane once. I said: "What is the problem? I want to do it, we all want to do it." And he explained that in the deal that we want, they feel exposed. If [digitised Beatles music] gets out, if one employee decides to take it home and wap it on to the internet, we would have the right to say, "Now you recompense us for that. And they're scared of that."

Just to be clear, Paul McCartney says he wants to sell music online, but he—and his record company—are worried that someone could conceivably download it, upload it back to the internet, and open the floodgates to piracy. As opposed to just uploading the higher-quality digital files you're selling to people on Apple-shaped USB drives right now, or on CDs, more than a decade ago. McCartney expects an agreement by which he would be compensated if people share his music, as if it would be somehow correlated with the release of Beatles' tracks online, which EMI—no stranger to releasing music online—is scared of because it's insane.

Poor Paul! Someone should tell him, you know, about all the wapping. [Ars Technica]

UPDATE: From anonymized (not anonymous) source who researched similar subjects in the past, a possible explanation:

It's not the music for sale they're worried about but the raw remasters (this is why McCartney specifically refers to an employee potentially uploading the music). I don't know how much you've read about the making of [Beatles Rock Band] but they went to incredible lengths to protect the masters. It was only towards the end of the project that Harmonix received the (heavily encrypted) music they needed; before then, Apple Corps had been sending them "dirtied-up" copies of the music just in case it was intercepted halfway.

The real threat from McCartney and the other Beatles (and er, spouses of Beatles) is that if, somewhere in the process of turning their music into iTunes-friendly files, the MASTERS get leaked... then they will sue the pants off of EMI. And EMI allegedly said they are in such a precarious financial position that they do not want to take the risk of getting hit by a lawsuit that could take the company down.

An alternate theory, which still doesn't quite work. If masters leaked to the internet, presumably they'd be encoded in something like FLAC at best, which would be indistinguishable from the files the Beatles are OK with selling on USB drives right now. Or if this refers to the recording's component parts, like the ones used to create Rock Band, still: This seems avoidable. And in either strain of paranoia: Paul McCartney doesn't understand the internet. (And possibly other things, too!)

Hank calls the technique equivalent to a virtual cover band playing The Beatles' songs. He bought all of their albums, had a computer analyze the waveforms to determine their pitch, timbre and other defining qualities, then destroyed the original copies of the music.

He then had a computer reconstruct the songs based on the data it collected from analyzing the waveforms. It wasn't a recording, but a complete mathematical rebuild of the song.

That's really cool, and incredibly impressive that he managed to recreate the tracks from scratch like that, but there's no way the defense stands a chance against EMI's lawyers. I think I remember this argument being tried before with MP3s. A defendant claimed that because a majority of the waveform data was thrown away during encoding, it was not identical to the original recording.

Nice try, said the judge. As long as it's audibly identifiable as a certain recording, it constitutes as copyright infringement. At least that's what I remember. If anyone knows the specific case or I'm completely wrong, please chime in. Have fun in court November 20, Mr. Risan. [FastCompany]

The talks come as Apple is separately racing to offer a portable, full-featured, tablet-sized computer in time for the Christmas shopping season, in what the entertainment industry hopes will be a new revolution. The device could be launched alongside the new content deals, including those aimed at stimulating sales of CD-length music, according to people briefed on the project.

Apple is working with EMI, SonyMusic, Warner Music and Universal Music Group, on a project the company has codenamed "Cocktail", according to four people familiar with the situation.

The Financial Times' sources point out that the device will have a 10-inch touchscreen and run iPhone OS. The tablet will be able to connect to the Internet using Wi-Fi like the iPod touch, and—according to publishers—it will also have a book marketplace. Yes, that's Jeff Bezos' worst nightmare.

Like always, remember our rule about rumors: Don't trust them—although secretly I hope they are right. Or else:

[Financial Times via 9to5]

EMI says that audio engineers spent four years remastering the collection of albums, combining the latest sound technology with vintage studio equipment to give it an updated, but authentic sound. Each album will come with a short documentary about the respective recordings, and the expanded booklets will have new photos and liner notes included.

There's no word about modes of digital distribution yet, but keep your ears peeled—EMI says they'll discuss that later. And for those not sold on the difference between Stereo and Mono, just look at The Beach Boys' Pet Sounds as an example of similar stereo/mono recordings from that era. The difference is like night and day, kids. Night. And. Day.

THE BEATLES' ENTIRE ORIGINAL RECORDED CATALOGUE REMASTERED BY APPLE CORPS LTD. AND EMI MUSIC FOR WORLDWIDE RELEASE ON SEPTEMBER 9, 2009 (9-9-09)

London, England – April 7, 2009 – Apple Corps Ltd. and EMI Music are delighted to announce the release of the original Beatles catalogue, which has been digitally re-mastered for the first time, for worldwide CD release on Wednesday, September 9, 2009 (9-9-09), the same date as the release of the widely anticipated "The Beatles: Rock Band" video game. Each of the CDs is packaged with replicated original UK album art, including expanded booklets containing original and newly written liner notes and rare photos. For a limited period, each CD will also be embedded with a brief documentary film about the album. On the same date, two new Beatles boxed CD collections will also be released.

The albums have been re-mastered by a dedicated team of engineers at EMI's Abbey Road Studios in London over a four year period utilising state of the art recording technology alongside vintage studio equipment, carefully maintaining the authenticity and integrity of the original analogue recordings. The result of this painstaking process is the highest fidelity the catalogue has seen since its original release.

The collection comprises all 12 Beatles albums in stereo, with track listings and artwork as originally released in the UK, and 'Magical Mystery Tour,' which became part of The Beatles' core catalogue when the CDs were first released in 1987. In addition, the collections 'Past Masters Vol. I and II' are now combined as one title, for a total of 14 titles over 16 discs. This will mark the first time that the first four Beatles albums will be available in stereo in their entirety on compact disc. These 14 albums, along with a DVD collection of the documentaries, will also be available for purchase together in a stereo boxed set.

Within each CD's new packaging, booklets include detailed historical notes along with informative recording notes. With the exception of the 'Past Masters' set, newly produced mini-documentaries on the making of each album, directed by Bob Smeaton, are included as QuickTime files on each album. The documentaries contain archival footage, rare photographs and never-before-heard studio chat from The Beatles, offering a unique and very personal insight into the studio atmosphere.

A second boxed set has been created with the collector in mind. 'The Beatles in Mono' gathers together, in one place, all of the Beatles recordings that were mixed for a mono release. It will contain 10 of the albums with their original mono mixes, plus two further discs of mono masters (covering similar ground to the stereo tracks on 'Past Masters'). As an added bonus, the mono "Help!" and "Rubber Soul" discs also include the original 1965 stereo mixes, which have not been previously released on CD. These albums will be packaged in mini-vinyl CD replicas of the original sleeves with all original inserts and label designs retained.

Discussions regarding the digital distribution of the catalogue will continue. There is no further information available at this time.

Apparently Depeche Mode is still making music, and Dave Gahan is still alive. And while the Mode isn't necessarily floating my boat, I like this model for individual artist subscriptions. Here it's mostly a promo for DM's new album, Sounds of the Universe—along with the album when it's released, you'll get a trickle of singles, remixes and videos before and after the record comes out (there is no complete list of everything you'll receive)—all in iTunes Plus DRM-free format.

I would probably do this for an artist that I was truly interestested in. Ahem, Mr. Mayer, please stop sitting next to Jennifer Aniston at the Oscars and start printing iTunes Passes. [iTunes Store]

EMI MUSIC DEBUTS FIRST iTUNES PASS WITH DEPECHE MODE

U.S. FANS TO HAVE ACCESS TO NEW AND EXCLUSIVE SINGLES, REMIXES, VIDEO AND OTHER CONTENT OVER COMING WEEKS

INCLUDES DEPECHE MODE'S UPCOMING 12TH STUDIO ALBUM, "SOUNDS OF THE UNIVERSE," PLUS ADDITIONAL EXCLUSIVE CONTENT RELEASED ON iTUNES

NEW YORK – February 24, 2009 – EMI Music today announced the debut of the first iTunes Pass with groundbreaking electro legends Depeche Mode. With iTunes Pass, music fans can get new and exclusive singles, remixes, video and other content from their favorite artists over a set period of time, delivered to their libraries as soon as they're available.

The first iTunes Pass debuts today in conjunction with Depeche Mode's forthcoming 12th studio album, "Sounds of the Universe," to be released on April 21 in the US. Fans who sign up starting today get the alternative/dance pioneers' new single, "Wrong," as well as the Black Light Odyssey Dub Remix of the new track "Oh Well." They will also receive the new album on its street date plus great music and video exclusives before and after the album's release over the next fifteen weeks. The Depeche Mode iTunes Pass can be purchased starting today for $18.99.

"As we work to better understand music consumers and help create stronger connections between fans and artists, we are pleased to work with Apple and Depeche Mode to kick off iTunes Pass," said Ronn Werre, president, Music Services for EMI Music. "We think it's a great new platform that will change the way artists engage with their audiences and also a powerful new way for us to build value for our artists' music. And with iTunes Pass, Depeche Mode are once again demonstrating that they are true trailblazers and innovators when it comes to creating amazing music and connecting with their fans."

"iTunes Pass is a great way for artists to give exclusive music and video, on their own schedule, directly to their fans." said Eddy Cue, Apple's vice president of Internet Services. "iTunes customers are going to love getting additional content directly from their favorite artists right when they make it available."

"The relationship between Depeche Mode and their fans has always been our top priority," said the band's manager, Jonathan Kessler. "We are thrilled to be the first to participate with Apple in giving fans the kind of deep musical experience they expect from Depeche Mode."

Today also marks the launch of the worldwide iTunes album pre-order for "Sounds of the Universe."

As one of the most influential bands of the post-punk era with global sales in excess of 100 million, Depeche Mode belongs to a select premier league of supergroups who have survived from the early 1980s with their ideals, creative vision and core members intact. Formed in 1981, Depeche Mode - Martin Gore, Dave Gahan and Andy 'Fletch' Fletcher - continue to win critical and commercial acclaim across the world both in the studio and on the road. All of the band's 11 studio albums have reached the Top Ten in not only the UK and USA but 20 plus countries around the world including Canada, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Sweden, Denmark, Switzerland, and Belgium. Since their inception, Depeche Mode's live shows continue to be a must-see attraction, with the group playing to 2.8 million people across 31 countries on their last tour alone.

That's right. They won't let you choose which stuff you can upgrade. This has been reported already, at least by this guy—and I suppose it's not new news given the fact that they've done upgrades since EMI went DRM-free a while back—but the scope is much greater now that all the labels are on board. After returning from a week of Macworld and CES to the comforts of home, the impact of this has hit me, like the baseball bat I took on the cheekbone back in 1993.

You're snickering. Not about the baseball bat (I hope), but about the whole spending-money-on-iTunes thing. Yep, I am a recovered iTunes DRM-music-buying addict. I still pay for music, but now Amazon is the legitimate source of all my thankfully DRM-free impulse buys.

Last Tuesday's announcement that iTunes would go DRM-free was good news in several ways: Not only might iTunes win me back as a customer, but I also would be able to upgrade the best stuff I bought over the years, so I could have it in high quality, playable not just on my Apple (TM) products, but also on Sonos or BlackBerry or any other fun music-savvy device that comes in and out of my house.

So I clicked "Upgrade To iTunes Plus" and I got a gun to my face saying "$250 or else."

Seriously, they want $250—actually, they want $250.06 but what's a few pennies between lifelong friends?—to upgrade the 1,000+ songs I've bought over the years. That would mean that all those albums I paid $9.99 for would actually cost me $13 in the end. That's the same amount the damn CD would have cost me in the first place, if I still bought those museum pieces. And the CD would have given me the option to rip at higher quality than 256Kbps, and would come with liner notes telling me who played that sick drum solo on Track 12, to boot.

The clincher was this: When I went to click on just the albums I really wanted to update, the "upgrade" price was... full price. WHA?? I clicked on the FAQ, and this is what I saw:

I remembered a similar bulk upgrade offer before, when it was just EMI's content, but as you can imagine, the price they wanted for that was less scary. I must've paid it (probably under the influence of alcohol). I haven't caved this time—not yet at least. I'd be faced with having to explain a $250 iTunes charge to the wife without getting any new music, movies or music videos to show for it. She's a cool person and all, but I wouldn't escape that conversation without some kind of half-accusatory, half-pitying "Oh babe."

Do you see what you're doing to me and to my family, iTunes? I guess you do: You are only the monster the music industry has made you for screwing with their decades-long con. Amazon definitely got the better deal, most likely for appearing harmless—no doubt their inevitable contract renegotiation will be a bitch and a half.

And to those of you out there who steal music instead of buying it, well, frankly, I can totally see why. [iTunes What's New]

While EMI is already offering DRM-free music on iTunes, they represent only 10% of the music market. With "the big three" on board, a majority of iTunes' music could be DRM-free. But the new pricing options may be the real cost of it all to consumers. While catalog titles will now start at 79 cents, the studios will be able to price music above 99 cents (to undisclosed amounts)—though CNET's source says that all music will eventually return to 79 cents.

So while it sounds like Apple finally caved to the music industry, at least consumers may get something decent out of it. Hopefully we'll hear about it all today at the keynote. [CNET]

By the time Blumlein's patents were put to use—nearly twenty five years later— the prolific inventor had already passed away. In 1942, while testing radar technology, Blumein's plane crashed in Wales and killed everyone on board. He left behind a legacy of 128 different patents, one for every six weeks of his working life.

The person in charge of restoring Blumlein's recordings, sound engineer Roger Beardsley, called the transfers “incredibly historic.” He used digital remastering to remove crackles and hisses from 78 original pressings, allowing the recordings to sound the way they were originally meant to. Check out the BBC for a fun little video of Blumlein and colleagues walking through a room counting to demonstrate the technology. [BBC]

For starters, NASA: You got the choice of the entire Beatles catalog, and you pick a song only because it contains a relevant metaphor? I mean, have you ever listened to Revolver? Wait, actually, you clearly must've, since Paul McCartney performed "Good Day Sunshine" in Nov. 2005 for the astronauts aboard the International Space Station. If you're aiming at aliens, why not choose something a little less intelligible, like "Dig a Pony," "Come Together" or "Tomorrow Never Knows." If those weren't written for space aliens, I don't know what.

Next on my shitlist: EMI and Apple Corp Update: and Michael Jackson too. WTF???? I've been a lifelong fan of your stupid Fab Four, but you're giving six billion purple globules from the Crab Nebula a shot at digitally retrieving The Beatles before I get one single measly 99-cent download? How is that fair? (Of course, the complete Beatles catalog is already on my iPod, but still!)

And finally, a message to the Crab people: Don't trust these downloads. You'll see the file streaming into your antenna array and you'll be like, "Sweet! Free music!" But then you open the file, and you get this message on your Crab Nebula equivalent of Windows Media Player 11, saying that in order to enjoy this track, you need to get authorization from a central server. You click okay, and the message has to travel back to earth, taking another 50,000 years or so. Which may seem worth the wait, only the track itself expires in 30 days.

So good luck to you, purple Crab people. And GFY, recording industry. You have dissed me for the last time. [Network World via The Inquirer]

Amazon MP3 has the only digital music catalogue that offers DRM-free tunes from all four major labels, with around 3.3 million tracks in the library, they are packing some weight. If that fact doesn't have Apple quaking in their boots, the competitive pricing should. We couldn't care less how Amazon and Apple get down and dirty, but as they are bound to be set for a fight, teeth gnashing and all, it can only mean good things for customers. DRM-free music will have a bigger global presence, and that should solidify its worth in the consumer market. Also, the ensuing price war is not going to be too bad either. After all, iTunes surely cannot keep their offerings priced above the competition, whilst simultaneously offering DRM gimped and comparatively expensive ($1.29), DRM-free tracks. It's about to get interesting—watch this space. [Amazon]

Monday, in fact, is the day the service goes live, and we cannot hold our wee we're so excited. Initially, only Windows Vista and XP will be supported, but the Macboys and girls see some action on March 18th.

The system will work by tracking all downloads, royalties will then be issued accordingly. It isn't too clear how that revenue will be generated, but expect some anal advertising to bombard a PC near you if you do give it a whirl. Still, we can't help our cynical judgement chiming in—how did Noah get two of every species on a wooden boat? He didn't—do you know what I mean? Nevertheless, we wait and hope for a legal, free, P2P music service, but we think eternal world peace is a little more likely by Monday. [Boy Genius Reports]

EMI is a business just like any other company, and its new owners must have realized that spending $132 million a year to alienate their customers was providing them with a really poor return on investment. I mean, it's just not good business sense. Will any of the other major labels follow suit? Time will tell, but if they do you can pretty much wave goodbye to the era of the RIAA having influence. A bittersweet victory it would be, as I'd need to find something else to bitch and moan about every day, but it'd be worth it in the end. [Ars Technica]

In case you've been living under a rock for the past 14 years and don't own a single Radiohead release, now's your chance to get on board. The first way to buy it is in a set with all seven discs in digipacks with original artwork. That'll set you back £40, or about $83, which isn't much of a discount (thanks mostly to the insane exchange rate).

The next option is to buy all seven albums as digital downloads, all encoded as 320kbps MP3s, along with digital artwork. The price for this is an unforgiving £35, or $73.

The last option is probably the most appealing to Radiohead die-hards, as it comes with a limited-edition USB drive. The 4GB drive will come loaded with the seven albums encoded as uncompressed WAV files as well as digital artwork. The price for this "strictly limited edition" piece of hardware? £80, or $167. Yes, $167 for a thumb drive loaded up with WAV files.

So, how many of these sets do you think EMI will sell? You've got to appreciate the choice of encoding options, but those prices are beyond insane. And the real problem is that only the most devoted of fans would even consider spending this kind of coin on RH materials, and they obviously own all the back catalog already. So, uh, what the hell, EMI? [Product Page]

The thing is, iTunes is kind of a crappy "control" in this little experiment if the only variable being tested is the presence of DRM, because its sales dwarf every other store in the test. Moreover, Universal's buying AdWords to drive traffic to the DRM-free downloads, throwing in yet another variable. It doesn't line up very well with the scientific method I was taught in high school.

Reading between the lines, it seems clear that what's really being tested isn't DRM-free downloads, it's the non-iTunes market—is it possible to really move digital music without the iTunes/iPod machine?—and Universal's ability to flex its atrophying muscles.

EMI's move to DRM-free tracks months ago was dismissed by some as a risky and desperate play, a sign of its weakness as the smallest label of the Big Four—its shareholders recently approved its sale to a private equity firm. Universal, on the other hand, is the biggest label in the world.

That doesn't mean it's not a sign of weakness. iTunes isn't the only store that's not a part of the test: None of the participating outlets have hardware linked to it. If iTunes was the only control here, why isn't Zune a part of the game? Where's eMusic for that matter? Universal looks like its angling to promiscuitize the digital music market—make the same music easily available from many sources that will play on any device—in order to make labels still matter, and stave off its own impending irrelevance.

The broader, more positive take on the move—which isn't necessarily divorced from the other one—is that the industry is beginning to realize they don't have a choice: DRM-free is the only way to really spur the digital music market, and ultimately for them to even hope to generate the kind of revenue they used to. This rosier outlook would include, in our opinion, Universal selling DRM-free music on iTunes at some point in the future.

Will the two remaining Big Four labels follow suit and explore DRM-free downloads? Undoubtedly, this as much of a test for Warner and Sony BMG as it is for Universal. If Universal pulls the plug in January (and Sony and Warner will know before we do), probably not, unless they're looking for an edge against the competition. If this test becomes policy, it seems safe to say that left with little choice, the others will fall in line in short order.

From there, the real question is the iTunes question: What are the labels going to do about it?

Universal's full press release:

CHART-TOPPING HITS MARK OPEN-MP3 TEST BY UNIVERSAL MUSIC GROUP (UMG)
MARKET LEADER REMOVES DRM PROTECTION IN THOUSANDS OF TITLES DURING TEST
PARTICIPANTS INCLUDE GOOGLE, BEST BUY, RHAPSODY, AMAZON.COM, WAL-MART & PURETRACKS, AMONG OTHERS

New York, New York...Universal Music Group (UMG), the world's leading music company, today announced that it is continuing the testing of digital sales of tracks and albums without digital rights management (DRM) by making thousands of its albums and tracks available from its digital repertoire in MP3 form without DRM enabling, for a limited time.

"Universal Music Group is committed to exploring new ways to expand the availability of our artists' music online, while offering consumers the most choice in how and where they purchase and enjoy our music," stated Doug Morris, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of UMG. "This test, which is a continuation of a series of tests that UMG began conducting earlier in the year, will provide valuable insights into the implications of selling our music in an open format."

As UMG's most comprehensive and extensive testing to date, the experiment will run from August to January and analyze such factors as consumer demand, price sensitivity and piracy in regards to the availability of open MP3s.

MP3s can be played on a full range of devices including dedicated MP3 players, mobile phones and the iPod. Regardless of the outcome of these tests, UMG will continue to support innovative digital models such as subscription and ad-supported services which rely on DRM as an enabling technology.

Albums and tracks that will be available during this test run the gamut from artists such as Amy Winehouse, Fall Out Boy, 50 Cent, Black Eyed Peas, Daddy Yankee, Mika, The Pussycat Dolls, Gwen Stefani, Maroon 5, Dr. Dre, Don Omar, Sting, Sugarland, Diana Krall, Paulina Rubio, Shania Twain, Nelly and Prince, to Bing Crosby, Elvis Costello, Reba McEntire, Count Basie, Dizzy Gillespie, Stevie Wonder, Johnny Cash and Patsy Cline, among many others.

Participants including Google, Wal-Mart, Best Buy Digital Music Store, Rhapsody, Transworld, Passalong Networks, Amazon.com and Puretracks, will offer downloads to consumers in the DRM-free audio format of their choice in a variety of bit rates. For the most part, the DRM free downloads will be offered at standard wholesale prices.

As part of this test, Universal will also be driving traffic to DRM-free downloads using Google's AdWords(tm) advertising program. Google ads will connect consumers directly to digital retailer gBox, Inc. (www.gbox.com) download store making the search and buying process as simple as possible. Because many consumers are searching for music and music related news and information online, Google is a powerful way to drive consumers to this test.

In addition, DRM-free downloads will also be available through artist and label-branded websites, including will.i.am.com, sum41.com, evefans.com, www.common-music.com, ryan-adams.com, blaqkaudio.com, dianakrall.com, sectionquartet.com, as well as defjam.com, islandrecords.com and classicsandjazz.co.uk, among many others.