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46 years ago, four lads from Liverpool came to America and the music industry has never been the same. Flash forward to today, and The Beatles have finally landed on iTunes -- and taken over most of Apple’s website as well.
Apple teased everyone with the home page of their website on Monday, promising a huge announcement at 10am EST Tuesday, which turned out to be the arrival of The Beatles on iTunes at long last. While many are disappointed that Apple didn’t have something more substantial to announce, the arrival of the boys from Liverpool in digital form is kind of a big deal.
To prove exactly how big a deal it is, Apple Inc. has created a whole section dedicated to The Fab Four, complete with videos of The Beatles through the years as well as their legendary live performance at the Washington Coliseum in 1964 before more than 7,000 eager fans, which came just two days after their historic appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show.
iTunes is offering The Beatles Box Set for $149, but you also have access to all 13 of the band’s original studio albums, with single albums priced at $12.99 and double albums priced at $19.99. Most surprisingly, individual tracks are also available from almost every album, although they’re priced at the higher $1.29 per track.
If you don’t want to watch The Beatles Live at the Washington Coliseum online, you’ll also be happy to know that you get a copy of the concert free when you buy The Beatles Box Set on iTunes -- then you can enjoy it on your Apple TV or iOS mobile device anytime.
The Beatles coming to iTunes ends years of media speculation about when the group will finally take the digital plunge. Many predicted the day was approaching after the band dipped their toes in the water recently with an apple-shaped USB drive filled with MP3 versions of the band’s music -- a nod to the group’s Apple Corps, which later inspired Apple Inc. CEO Steve Jobs to name the computer company we know and love.
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jchapman24
November 17, 2010 at 4:58pm
With such an iconic band and Jobs's fanboy love, I would have expected them to at least have the box set in an Apple Lossless option.
Technophile
November 17, 2010 at 6:15am
OK. I understand Jobs is a Beatle-mania guy. He could decorate his house in the likeness of McCartney for all I care. He should not think the rest of the world gives two cr@ps about a 60's "rock" band. Were they big? Yes. Are there still some older people who pine for the "good ol days" still interested? Sure. Is this earth-shattering, or a game changer? Absolutely not. I have no idea why, but this just seems to piss me off big time. Missteps, missed opportunities, quirky items...no problem, but this Beatle obsession from Jobs has me seriously pissed and I have no idea why. A byline, or a small statement, at best for the addition of an old rock band to the iTunes arsenal is all that was needed. I hope Jobs gets flak for something so stupid.
Philodina
November 16, 2010 at 4:00pm
The Beatles were and are wonderful, and if you've had to wait until now to buy their music, then this is great news. The reality is that you've been able to buy their complete collection, in my case on a flash drive stuck into a pretty green aluminum apple, from the Beatles for years.
This isn't really new other than as a source of additional income for everyone involved. Nothing particularly wrong with that, it just isn't new or exciting. Really should have bought Apple stock back in the days when it was cheap in which case I might well find this new and exciting.
I can see from the perspective of Apple Inc, itself that on a personal level this is a wonderfully symbolic event, beyond the views of curmudgeons like me. Enjoy the music folks. Beep-beep 'n beep-beep, Yeah!
haha
November 16, 2010 at 1:02pm
Hey everyone! Who wants to buy music you already got for free decades ago? Oh and BTW, you know you can send letters electronically now?
Pathetic. Apple is quickly destroying its "announcement" reputation.
iRevSeriously
November 16, 2010 at 11:42am
Yes, this announcement was a total and complete letdown. Although it's nice that Bettles fans can purchase and download their favorite songs through iTunes, it's not a game changer for me. I'm actually surprised by all the hype since we've always been able to add songs to iTunes manually. So, in other words, the news has NO IMPACT at all on my life.
And yes, the something I'll never forget about today is that it's when I made the decision to NEVER buy into the hype of an Apple announcement. Okay, I'm naive, but I was hoping a CDMA iPhone was the "one last thing" that would be announced today. What a bummer and Apple should be ashamed!
molotovmouse
November 16, 2010 at 10:45am
This is just sad. Who cares about the Beatles? Apple doesn't do things very often that piss me off, but with this they have.
powermixx
November 16, 2010 at 9:13am
thehive said it perfectly. Really? I feel duped. Apple has jumped the shark on this one.
thehive
November 16, 2010 at 9:06am
...this is great for anyone who doesn't already own those albums and/or have already converted them to their favorite digital format already...10 years ago.
dneal
November 16, 2010 at 10:13am
I guess it's for the technically challenged. Ripping CDs must be hard for some folks...
A review from the box set link:
by John Sheffer
Thanks, Beatles (Paul and Ringo) and Yoko and Olivia. Although I bought both CD box sets last year, I will purchase again in this format. What a great edition to my digital music library. I grew up with these songs and they've aged better than I have. What a great day for all of us. Big thanks to Steve Jobs for his persistence in getting these tracks for the iTunes Store.
