Via Slashdot, apparently you are infringing copyright law and could be fined if you get caught singing “Happy Birthday to You” in public in Australia. The phrase has not only been trademarked, the 4-lines of lyrics has also been copyrighted by the Warner Chappell Music, and they won’t expire until 2030. Aargh!! I’ve just realised that I have been stealing from the copyright holder every month when I sing this song to whoever had a birthday! My bad.
Scott Yang's Playground
Faith, Technology and Randomness in Life, According to Scott
Nov 20 2006
wow, never realized this. so what should we sing now ? lol :p.
Happy Birthday is public domain in Australia so we can sing it, record it, sell it and do whatever we like with it over here. Its copyright status is unclear in the US even though I think Warner Chappell are still extracting huge amounts for its use over there.
I don’t know why the iia put out the 2030 figure. The last surviving author died in 1946 and so if you add 50 years to that, you’re looking at it having expired in 1996/7.
Our copyright terms have now changed to life plus 70 years thanks to the US FTA but it fortunately wasn’t retrospective so Happy Birthday stays in public domain so if you’re in Australia, enjoy it!
This has got to be the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard! We don’t get paid for singing Happy Birthday everythime we sing it. . .dont these idiots realize that the copyright law was out in place for people who stole stuff to make a profit of their own??
How stupid and petty can someone get?
Today is my birthday and heaven help anyone if they think the can get away with NOT singing happy birthday to me! I wanna hear it from the rooftops!
Ready? . . . SING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!