Federal Judge George King ruled on Tuesday that Warner/Chappell Music is not the copyright owner of "Happy Birthday to You." The song, sang everyday across the world to celebrate a person's natal day, is now public domain.
That means Warner/Chappell Music could no longer charge for the song's use in public performance. The music company claimed it owns the copyright after its acquisition in 1998 of Birch Tree Ltd. Since then, Warner/Chappell Music has earned $2 million yearly in licensing fees, reports NBC.
King explained that Clayton Summy Co., the predecessor of Birch Tree, applied for copyright in 1935 only for the different piano arrangements of the song, not the lyrics.
Warner/Chappell Music filed a lawsuit in 2013 after a musician, recorded the song during a San Francisco event. Mark Rifkin, lawyer of the plaintiffs, in a statement, said, "We are extremely pleased with today's decision declaring that Warner Chappell does not own a copyright to Happy Birthday, the world's most popular song."
Other plaintiffs in the lawsuit include Jennifer Nelson, a filmmaker making a documentary on the song's history, reports Variety.
Rifkin said he will ask the court to order Warner/Chappell to return all money it received as payment for copyright to a song it does not own. Besides the lyrics, the melody of "Happy Birthday to You" is also public domain.
Court documents state that the song was written by sisters Mildred and Patty Hill in 1893. It was based on a melody from "Good Morning to All" but has different lyrics. Its first publication in "Song Stories for Kindergarten" was first published in the same year.
Warner/Chappell said it is considering its options.