On Nov. 16, Apple Inc. announced that music by legendary rock band the Beatles would be made available for purchase through the iTunes Store.

This deal was made after decades of dispute between Apple Inc. and Apple Corps, a multimedia corporation founded by the Beatles in 1968. Since 1978, when the Beatles accused Apple Inc. of trademark infringement, the two corporations had many legal battles, such as over licensing names, as well for the apple logo. However, 32 years later, in 2010, Apple Inc. and Apple Corps—and the Beatles’ record label, EMI—have reached an agreement to sell the Beatles’ music on iTunes.

Among other musical groups such as Kid Rock and AC/DC, the Beatles had been one of the most prominent holdouts from iTunes.

Apple will sell 13 remastered Beatles studio albums, but listeners can opt to purchase individual songs for $1.29 apiece. Apple is also selling a $149 digital box set, which includes every Beatles song, as well as several mini-documentaries of the makings of the albums, and a download of the first Beatles concert in America.

The day before this welcome to the digital world, the iTunes homepage displayed a banner saying, “Tomorrow is just another day. That you’ll never forget.” Below it was a reminder for consumers to return to iTunes on the following day for “an exciting announcement.”

The next day, Nov. 16, the banner had been changed to a photo of the Beatles alongside their logo. Links to the Beatles’ albums could be found scattered across the iTunes homepage, and their songs started tearing up the charts once again.

Some students have expressed excitement over The Beatles’ greeting to iTunes.

“I think that it’s about time The Beatles were on iTunes because they are one of the most popular groups that have ever existed,” Nick Weinstein ’14 said. “Having this happen now is a great idea because it’s much more accessible and cheaper.”

Others find that this is a good thing, but were let down after iTunes’ mysterious announcements.

“I was extremely excited when I saw that iTunes was releasing something new, but was extremely disappointed when all it was was The Beatles,” Nick Maki ’11 said. “Apple hyped up the release way too much.”

Tyler Jent ’13 chimes in with Maki. “I think it’s great, but [Apple] hyped it up to be so much more. A lot of people already have Beatles songs on their iTunes from CDs and other sources, so it’s not as exciting as it seemed,” Jent said.

Nevona Friedman ’12 finds that this “won’t really introduce more people to the Beatles, since they’re so well-known,” rather it will “make them more accessible to kids.”

Some students also question the motive of Apple to introduce the Beatles to iTunes.

“I’m not surprised that Apple took the time to cash in on such an event with their website and five television ads,” Ned Hardy ’13 said. “I think it’s merely the result of a decade-long feud between two organizations, Apple Inc. and Apple Records.”

Friedman wonders if this action was taken to boost Apple’s image rather than financial gain for the corporation.

“iTunes is basically a break-even product for Apple, meaning they don’t profit from it or lose money, so this might be more of a PR move than a financial one,” Friedman said.

Regardless, the launch of the Beatles on iTunes has been proving to be successful. Only hours after its availability, all seventeen Beatles records could be found in the top 100 best-selling albums list on iTunes.

In a press release, Beatles drummer Ringo Starr said he was “particularly glad to no longer be asked when the Beatles are coming to iTunes.”

“If you want it—you can get it now—the Beatles from Liverpool to now! Peace and love, Ringo.”

What do you think? Is the introduction to the Beatles on iTunes revolutionary or is it simply another day? Leave your thoughts in the comment section below!

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• It’s really for real: 13 remastered Beatles studio albums arrive on iTunes (techvibes.com)
• Beatles Music Now Available on iTunes! (justjared.buzznet.com)