The Beatles and iTunes just showed us how broken the copyright system is

The group's record label just released The Beatles Bootleg Recordings 1963 to the public. But it was hardly done in the holiday spirit.

The Beatles
(Image credit: (John Pratt/Keystone/Getty Images))

This week, fans of The Beatles received an early Christmas present when the group's label, Apple Corps, surprise-released on iTunes a rare, two-hour collection of obscure demos, studio outtakes, and live BBC performances from the band's early mop-top days.

Indeed, The Beatles Bootleg Recordings 1963 has a lot of material for the Fab Four's fans to comb through: 59 raw, unpolished tracks — including three different versions of "From Me to You" — available for the non-bootleg price of $39.99.

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Chris Gayomali is the science and technology editor for TheWeek.com. Previously, he was a tech reporter at TIME. His work has also appeared in Men's Journal, Esquire, and The Atlantic, among other places. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook.