Opinion: All You Need Is Cash

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Apple Inc., the Cupertino-based tech company, seems to have found (finally) a permanent solution to its trademark battle with Apple Corps, the UK-based record label founded by the Beatles. The two companies had tried divvying up the landscape, with Apple Inc. using the trademark for computers and Apple Corps using it for music products, but the arrangement broke down as the Mac daddy’s products expanded into the downloadable music arena. The latest solution: Apple Inc. will have control over all uses of the Apple trademarks, and Apple Corps will license those trademarks from Cupertino. No terms were announced, but it’s a safe bet that Apple Inc. resolved the latest dispute the same way it did previous ones: by opening its checkbook.
The most interesting question now is, how long will it be before Steve Jobs announces that the Beatles’ songs will be available on iTunes? The band’s label (EMI) and lawyers have long been willing to make the leap online, but the main sticking point (aside from wanting to remaster the tracks) was the price. The group’s representatives wanted millions of dollars up front. That might be hard for most online music outlets to justify, given how thin the margins are on sales. But if you’re Apple Inc., you’re not in this business to sell 99-cent downloads. That’s why Jobs is in a unique position to satisfy Paul, Ringo and the estates of John and George. With the fight over the Apple trademark resolved, expect U2 to sink to No. 2 in the official Apple Inc. pantheon of rock heroes soon.