Paul McCartney is reported to have begun the process of aquiring the rights to the Lennon/McCartney back-catalogue.
The U.S. Copyright Act of 1976 gave songwriters the ability to recapture the publisher’s share of their songs. For those written before 1978, that process can take place after 56 years – something which the Lennon/McCartney catalog hits in 2018.
The news comes following reports earlier this week that Michael Jackson’s estate is to sell its 50% share in Sony/ATV Music Publishing to Sony in a $750 deal. ATV’s crown jewel is the Lennon/McCartney catalog.
In order to reclaim the publishing ownership of a song, the songwriter must file with the US Copyright Office anywhere from 2 to 10 years before the 56 years run out. Billboard confirms that McCartney filed a termination notice for 32 songs on December 15th last year. The move will only free up McCartney’s share – not that of his songwriting partner John Lennon – and only in the US. Sony/ATV will still own the songs in the rest of the world.