I read somewhere that Jackson tried several times to sell the catalog back to McCartney, but they couldn&#x27;t work out a price. The Beatles catalog was just out of McCartney&#x27;s league. McCartney wasn&#x27;t new to the rights-management business, in fact, he taught it to Jackson, he just didn&#x27;t have the capital.<p>&gt; It was just a big rent seeking exercise.<p>I wouldn&#x27;t necessarily conclude that. It&#x27;s true, the Beatles catalog was a huge money-maker for Jackson, but Jackson&#x27;s people were remarkable stewards. Managing rights is not just a matter of sitting back and collecting royalty checks. You have to manage things so that you stay in the public eye. One could say that the Beatles might not be quite as popular now without Jackson&#x27;s management.