What is the REAL reason why I can't get Beatles' songs from iTunes or Yahoo Music?

Globe307 is mostly correct; however Wacko Jacko has had to sell the majority stake in the publishing to Sony to fuel his 'erratic' lifestyle. McCartney actually owns the publishing to some of the very early Beatles songs, such as "Love Me Do", since they were published to different companies before the band created their own publishing company, Northern Songs. He's been able to quietly buy them up over the years. Also many of Harrison's and Starr's songs ("Something" & "Octopus's Garden" for example) are owned by their own companies, and thus not controlled by Sony/MJ.

The only songs totally owned by all four Beatles (and/or estates) are "Free As A Bird" and "Real Love" from the 1996 'Anthology' project.

I thought that is the authority of that song

MJ does own the pubishing rights to the beatles catalog but that doesn't really have anything to do with why you can't get the songs on online stores. It just means he gets a bit of a cut when ever one of the songs is played (or in this case downloaded) so he'd have everything to win by it being on iTunes, regardless of hows its distributed.

I'm sure some of it does have to do with disagreements over how much they get from each download.

Part of the larger reason though is the long standing "fued" between apple and the Beatles's apple corps. Way back when apple computers started the Beatle's apple corps sued them for trademark infingement. Part of the agreement ended up being that apple computers would license the name from the Beatles and they promised never to get into the music buisness. On the flip side Apple Corps promised never to get into the computer buisness. When apple computer started to get into the iPod and iTunes buisness Apple Corps sued because they felt that apple computer wasn't living up to their end of the deal. When Apple Corps lost that case it left some bad blood between the two.

Its getting cleared up though. Now the big hurdle seems to be that the Beatles are waiting for remasters of their songs before they relase them online.

the beetles said no

same with AC/DC

it does have to do with royalty payments and it may be that their agenst have never releases the rights to online music stores. the reasons could be many - ranging from to wanting to keep the music set above the mainstream. MJ does own some of the rights to the music but not all of the rights to all beatles music!!

CUZ THERE OLD AND OUT OF STYLE!

The rights of Beatle songs are privately owned by Michael Jackson and Sony. No online music store has been able to secure rights for Beatle songs.