$14M In Royalties Being Returned As 'Happy Birthday' Song Officially Part Of Public Domain
SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) -- A federal judge has ruled that the Happy Birthday song is part of the public domain.
Anyone can now sing or play the song without fear of having to pay a royalty after the ruling.
Warner/ Chappell Music had claimed copyright on the song until the year 2030, but Federal Judge George H. King gave final approval Monday to a settlement in which $14 million in royalties collected by the company will be returned.
"This is a huge victory for the public, and for the artists who want to use Happy Birthday to You in their videos and music," Daniel Schacht of Donahue Fitzgerald LLP Partners said.
The class action lawsuit sought to represent anyone who had paid royalties to the company for use of the birthday song.
