The Beatles have reached a deal with record label EMI over £30 million in unpaid royalties.

Sir Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and the widows of John Lennon and George Harrison took legal action against the music giant in 2005.

They claimed that they had not received sufficient money from album sales, but they have now come to an agreement with the label.

An EMI spokeswoman said: "I can confirm that we have reached a mutually acceptable settlement and that we are not going to say anything more than that."

The agreement could pave the way for legal downloads of Beatles hits like 'Yesterday', 'Hey Jude' and 'The Long And Winding Road'.