A federal court in Los Angeles has issued a preliminary injunction against BlueBeat.com, a digital music vendor, for offering MP3s of the Beatles' catalog without permission. The company has been barred from resuming operations.
BlueBeat claims that it added "psychoacoustic simulations" to the songs, thereby allowing the company to sell them through a legal loophole. However, the judge who is overseeing the suit - which was filed by EMI Music and Apple Corps Ltd. - says that there is no distinct difference.
BlueBeat has been selling the remastered catalog for 25 cents per song.
Hank Risa, the defendant and owner of BlueBeat, told the Los Angeles Times that he had a special agreement with EMI that enabled him to sell the Fab Four's music.
"In secret agreement, we worked together to create protected works that would ensure they would get paid royalties. That's what we did," Risa said. "We did this with their permission."
Risa has stated that BlueBeat.com will return "shortly," as soon as an agreement can be worked out with EMI.
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