Beatles songs downloadable for free

OSLO, Norway, Jan. 6 (UPI) -- The Norwegian broadcasting company NRK says it made a deal with the owners of the rights to the Beatles' songs to air podcasts featuring the downloadable tunes.

The Times of London said the podcasts tell in Norwegian the stories behind each of the Beatles' 212 songs, which can be isolated from the short films and downloaded for free.

Fourteen tracks from the first podcasts are available at the NRK Web site now, while the others are expected to follow as subsequent podcasts air throughout the month, The Times said.

NME.com said this marks this first time songs by the band can be legally downloaded.

NRK's deal with TONO, the Norwegian firm that holds the rights to the music, expires in four weeks, after which all the musical content will be excised from the podcasts on the NRK Web site, The Guardian said.