‘Happy birthday’ to all of us: Judge gives world a gift, says song belongs to everyone

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No matter your birthday, you just got a gift.


A California federal judge ruled Tuesday that “Happy Birthday to You” does not belong to the mega music corporation that has long claimed it. Instead, the world’s most popular song belongs to, well, the world.

The ruling brings to an end an intense two-year legal standoff between a handful of independent filmmakers and massive company Warner Music. It also throws into doubt as much as $50 million in licensing fees collected by the music giant over the past 27 years, raising the possibility of a class-action lawsuit to come.

The decision by U.S. District Judge George H. King delighted the plaintiffs, who portrayed their lawsuit as a David-versus-Goliath battle over the so-called “birthday song.”

“‘Happy Birthday’ is finally free after 80 years,” Randall Newman, an attorney for the plaintiffs, told the Los Angeles Times. “Finally, the charade is over. It’s unbelievable.”

Warner/Chappell, the publishing arm of Warner Music, told the newspaper that the company is “looking at the court’s lengthy opinion and considering our options.”

Tuesday’s ruling could have a much broader impact than money from licensing fees or even movie scenes, however. Instead, it could allow businesses of all types — from TV shows to Broadway plays to greeting cards to your local restaurant — to use “Happy Birthday” without fear of a lawsuit.

“Warner/Chappell has been squeezing money out of a lot of people for a long time,” Michael Donaldson, an attorney at Donaldson + Callif who has represented several of the plaintiffs in the past, told The Washington Post.

“The song belongs to the American people.”

Many Americans will be surprised that its ownership was ever in doubt. “Happy Birthday” is sung millions — perhaps billions — of times every year, all around the globe, at home, in schools, on television and in movies. It “is quite likely the most sung music in history, including all the output of the three B’s, Beethoven, Bach and The Beatles,” according to the Songwriters Hall of Fame.

Despite its ubiquity, however, “Happy Birthday to You” has been claimed by Warner since 1988, when the company bought its copyright. That meant that anyone wanting to use the song for commercial purposes — such as in a film, Broadway play or on television — would have to pay at least $1,500.

Lots of people did. Warner/Chappell makes an estimated $5,000 per day, or $2 million per year, licensing the rights to the song. (Donaldson, the entertainment attorney, said that number is low. “I think when they dig into it, it’s going to be a lot more than $2 million per year,” he told The Post.) source:washingtonpost