"Happy Birthday" Enters Public Domain

2015

The "Happy Birthday" copyright is ruled invalid, putting the song into the public domain.

For decades, "Happy Birthday" is one of the most profitable copyrights in music, earning an estimated $2 million every year. That's because anytime the song is used in a movie, TV show or commercial, it has to be cleared. Here's where it gets particularly insidious: Let's say Channel 9's weatherman Storm Field (our favorite weatherman name ever) turns 50, and his anchors end the newscast by singing him "Happy Birthday." A few weeks later, there's a good chance the station will get a bill demanding payment, and the station has little recourse since they used it on the air. This is why most theme restaurants sing their own birthday songs ("Happy happy birthday, from Bennigan's to you...") - because if they sing "Happy Birthday," they have to pay up. The song has a long and entangled history, dating back to 1893 when two sisters came up with the melody and used the song in schools. The song was first known as "Good Morning to All," and it was published as "Happy Birthday" in 1935, giving it copyright protection through 2030. In 2013, a filmmaker researching the song finds a 1922 songbook listing the famous "Happy Birthday To You" lyrics, and presents it as evidence in a lawsuit charging that the song should therefore be public domain, since any work published before 1923 falls into that category. The case goes to trial, and two years later a judge agrees, liberating "Happy Birthday" for all.