A distributor is claiming that Sony and Apple have conspired to block a documentary with public domain footage of the Beatles' first concert in the U.S. The gig, from February 11, 1964, went down at the Coliseum in Washington, D.C.
Ace Arts claims in a federal antitrust complaint that Sony/ATV Music Publishing and Apple interfered with the release of The Beatles: The Lost Concert.
The complaint claims that National General, the original owner of the only recording of the concert, went out of business after its successor, American Financial, liquidated its assets in the mid-70s. Ace continues on to say that around that time the master tape was "sold without copyright protection," and "became immediately and permanently dedicated to the public domain."
The New York premiere of the film was slated for spring 2012, until Sony/ATV and Apple Corps interfered, the complaint states. Neither Sony nor Apple have commented on the suit.
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