Though the exact numbers remain unknown, the chairman and CEO of Sony/ATV Music Publishing Martin Bandier has told Variety that the deal struck between MTV and Apple Corp for the recently announced Beatles game involved figures previously unheard of in the games industry.

Bandier stated: “There have been mutterings from artists and songwriters that they are not being offered their fair share in video games, but the game makers have the leverage. In the world of rock, there are thousands of tracks that will work, but when you get into the world of unique artists, that leverage shifts, tremendously, to the artists and songwriters.

“We signed a deal that would be considered very rich by the videogame company but fair for the artists. It will have online implications that will be enormous.”

The claims are at odds with Activision CEO Bobby Kotick’s previous assertions that his firm’s recent Guitar Hero tie-in with US rockers Aerosmith “generated more money for the band than any of their albums”.