New Evidence Suggests "Happy Birthday" Isn't Actually Copyrighted

One of the ways in which the raging trash fire that is the modern music industry staves off its inevitable demise is through licensing songs: record labels can essentially get free money by charging people fees for using music from their catalog in movies, TV shows, video games, etc. It also means that if you're a musician who only released one hit—say you're Semisonic, who released "Closing Time," or Luniz, who released "I Got 5 on It"—you can effectively get paid for your one great song, over and over, despite having never written even a nearly potent follow-up.

Owning the rights to a song can also be almost like owning stocks. Some songs may yield no profits from licensing, others may yield insane dividends. Consider the tale of Michael Jackson, buying the Beatles' catalog after Paul McCartney lamented to him he'd been fucked out of his publishing earlier in his career.

Or, consider Warner/Chappell, which since 1988 has owned the rights to "Happy Birthday." Fortune reports that licensing fees for the tune nets the company $2 million per year. However, all of that might change.

Long ago in the year 2013, a filmmaker filed a class action lawsuit against Warner/Chappell for trying to charge her $1,500 to license "Happy Birthday," claiming that the track was in the public domain and that Warner/Chappell had no right to claim otherwise. The case dragged on, until earlier this week it was revealed that "Happy Birthday" was likely put in the public domain by 1922. The version of "Happy Birthday" Warner/Chappell owned the rights to was from 1935. This information was submitted to the judge overseeing the case, who has the power to rule that "Happy Birthday" has been in the public domain all along and that Warner/Chappell's claim of copyright is invalid.

This is very exciting news, especially for anyone that's had to sit through any of the alternative versions of the song that they sing to you in chain restaurants.

1. Inside the Gathering of the Juggalos' Bare-Knuckle Boxing Competition
2. White People Didn't Invent the Word "Squad"
3. Music Festivals Should Ban Bindis
4. Techno Parties Are Facing Political Corruption in Vietnam
5. Paradigm Now Owns Two of the Biggest Electronic Booking Agencies

Follow Drew on Twitter.