Post by Beatlemon on Apr 28, 2005 14:41:41 GMT -5
Just passing this on ...
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George Harrison's estate sues Michael Jackson-owned company
Last Updated Wed, 27 Apr 2005 14:28:48 EDT
CBC Arts
www.cbc.ca/story/arts/national/2005/04/27/Arts/050427harrison.html
LONDON - The estate of the late Beatle George Harrison is suing a company controlled by Michael Jackson and entertainment giant Sony.
The legal action claims that the firm, Sony/ATV, owes the Harrison estate millions of dollars in unpaid royalties from songs that Harrison wrote in the 1960s.
John Lennon, left, and fellow Beatle George Harrison in 1966. (AP file photo)
According to a report in Britain's Daily Telegraph newspaper, Harrisongs – the music-publishing venture owned by Harrison's estate – initiated the suit last month in London's High Court.
Along with Sony, Jackson jointly owns the publishing rights to a large number of songs in the Beatles catalogue.
About one third of the 35 songs listed in the suit are Harrison compositions that were written for the Fab Four. The list includes Taxman, Harrison's jab at the greedy British government.
The other songs were solo efforts that appeared on the soundtrack of the 1968 film Wonderwall.
Harrison, known as the "quiet" Beatle, was the group's lead guitarist. He lost his battle with cancer in 2001.
Last year, Sony/ATV paid out more than $2 million to Harrisongs as part of a settlement that was not made public. It covered royalties from 1991 to 1999 on the songs in question.
The current suit seeks royalties from 1999 until the present. It claims that Harrisongs filed suit because Harrison's representatives were not allowed to inspect "relevant books and records relating to the compositions and to royalties, fees and on the sums due to Harrisongs" from 1999 on.
"Obviously, we have the highest respect for the Harrison estate," a spokesman for Sony/ATV told the Telegraph. "But Sony/ATV has a policy that we don't comment on any commercial transactions with our writers nor any pending litigation.''
Jackson, the pop singer known for the best-selling album Thriller, is currently facing child-molestation charges in California.
There have been rumours for years that Jackson has been on the verge of putting the Beatles' catalogue up for sale to support his lavish lifestyle.
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What do you think?
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George Harrison's estate sues Michael Jackson-owned company
Last Updated Wed, 27 Apr 2005 14:28:48 EDT
CBC Arts
www.cbc.ca/story/arts/national/2005/04/27/Arts/050427harrison.html
LONDON - The estate of the late Beatle George Harrison is suing a company controlled by Michael Jackson and entertainment giant Sony.
The legal action claims that the firm, Sony/ATV, owes the Harrison estate millions of dollars in unpaid royalties from songs that Harrison wrote in the 1960s.
John Lennon, left, and fellow Beatle George Harrison in 1966. (AP file photo)
According to a report in Britain's Daily Telegraph newspaper, Harrisongs – the music-publishing venture owned by Harrison's estate – initiated the suit last month in London's High Court.
Along with Sony, Jackson jointly owns the publishing rights to a large number of songs in the Beatles catalogue.
About one third of the 35 songs listed in the suit are Harrison compositions that were written for the Fab Four. The list includes Taxman, Harrison's jab at the greedy British government.
The other songs were solo efforts that appeared on the soundtrack of the 1968 film Wonderwall.
Harrison, known as the "quiet" Beatle, was the group's lead guitarist. He lost his battle with cancer in 2001.
Last year, Sony/ATV paid out more than $2 million to Harrisongs as part of a settlement that was not made public. It covered royalties from 1991 to 1999 on the songs in question.
The current suit seeks royalties from 1999 until the present. It claims that Harrisongs filed suit because Harrison's representatives were not allowed to inspect "relevant books and records relating to the compositions and to royalties, fees and on the sums due to Harrisongs" from 1999 on.
"Obviously, we have the highest respect for the Harrison estate," a spokesman for Sony/ATV told the Telegraph. "But Sony/ATV has a policy that we don't comment on any commercial transactions with our writers nor any pending litigation.''
Jackson, the pop singer known for the best-selling album Thriller, is currently facing child-molestation charges in California.
There have been rumours for years that Jackson has been on the verge of putting the Beatles' catalogue up for sale to support his lavish lifestyle.
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What do you think?
