BEATLES PODCAST PLAN HALTED

Earlier this week (begs05Jan09), it was announced that podcasts from 2001 documentary Var daglige Beatles (Our Daily Beatles) were to be made available as free downloads online.

The shows featured top Norwegian journalists talking about their favourite Beatles tracks, and then playing them.

But the move to upload all the podcasts online had to be halted because bosses at NBK, the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation, discovered the action would breach the terms of an agreement with rights holders.

In a statement, NBK executives say, "Due to terms still under negotiation, our own lawyers have advised us to pull back the podcasts.

"This is not how we would like things to be. But we can't break our agreements."

Plans to give iTunes the rights to offer the Beatles back catalogue as legal downloads fell through late last year (08) when talks between Sir Paul McCartney and his Apple Corps bosses and EMI Records stalled.