Beatles Sue EMI In Royalty Spat

THE BEATLES are suing EMI for $53 million in unpaid royalties the group alleges the label owes them. 

APPLE RECORDS filed suit in LONDON and NEW YORK on behalf of surviving BEATLES PAUL MCCARTNEY and RINGO STARR and the families of the late JOHN LENNON and GEORGE HARRISON after an audit uncovered the alleged discrepancy. 

A statement from APPLE said that "despite very clear provisions in our contract, EMI persist in ignoring their obligations and duty to account fairly and with transparency. APPLE and THE BEATLES are, once again, left with no choice but to sue EMI." 

An EMI spokesperson told REUTERS that "Artists do sometimes request an audit of their record label’s accounts, that’s not unusual, but sometimes there are differences of opinion, especially when the contracts are large and complex, when you can get issues of contractual interpretation. Ninety-nine out of 100 audit problems are resolved by amicable settlements for a small fraction of the claim." 

The parties have previously landed in court over royalty issues, and spent over a decade in litigation before a 1989 settlement.

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