The copyright for the world-famous Happy Birthday to You is not valid in the United States, has chosen a federal court in Los Angeles. The song was common knowledge, Judge George King. All claims that have been provided by different companies in the past 80 years, are inadmissible.
The ruling is a defeat which last claimed the rights for the music company Warner. Warner had secured in 1988 through an acquisition. Since then, the company earned about two million dollars a year with the commercial exploitation of the song
. <- tile: 7 desktop adctrl -> <- tile: 4 mobile adctrl ->
sued three documentary filmmakers who accused Warner to demand the usage fees for the song wrongly. “Now Happy Birthday is finally free after 80 years,” said plaintiff’s attorney Randall Newman after the verdict.
Originally the copyright for the song in 1935 was submitted by the company Clayton F. Summy, which was acquired in 1988 by Warner. While the melody was freely accessible as public property for many years, had to be paid for use of the song with the text so far.
Happy Birthday to You was in 1893 by the musician Mildred Hill and her sister, the kindergarten teacher Patty Hill, composed. It was originally called Good Morning to You and was intended as a welcoming song for kindergartners. The birthday text was drafted later. Most recently, the original manuscript of the song in the archives of the University of Louisville had emerged.
In Germany the song as of next year is free of rights, since the exploitation rights shall expire 70 years after the author’s death, and Patty Hill died 1946th
No comments:
Post a Comment