European trademark applications filed by Apple have surfaced that would finalize the transfer of The Beatles' iconic Granny Smith Apple logos from Apple Corps to Apple and expand the trademark to include technology products.
The pair of trademark applications filed with the European Trademarks Office was discovered by Patently Apple on Monday.
The transfer comes as a result of a 2007 legal settlement between Apple and The Beatles' parent company Apple Corps. The settlement resolved a long-standing dispute over ownership of the "Apple" trademark by granting Apple all related trademarks, though the company is required to license certain trademarks back to Apple Corps.
As such, Apple's recent filings for the Granny Smith trademark appear to be merely a matter of tying up loose ends. In the two applications, Apple has requested that the trademark for the former Apple Corps logo extend coverage to "computer hardware, online social networking services, mobile phones," as well as including broader categories such as musical instruments, games, clothing, advertising, education and broadcasting.
The resolution of the legal dispute between Apple and Apple Corps paved the way for the arrival of The Beatles' catalog on Apple's iTunes Music Store, though it took more than three years to happen. iTunes began carrying the band's music in November of last year, with first week sales reaching 450,000 albums and 2 million songs.
According to a report earlier this year, the royalty split for The Beatles "could be more lucrative" than for other artists. Sources claim that the unique licensing deal between Apple and Apple Corps allows Apple to directly pay royalties to The Beatles and Sony/ATV instead of treating digital download sales as a retail sale and paying royalties to record label EMI.