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Happy Birthday to You, But I've Been Sued
August 10, 2008
Is there anything happier than a birthday celebration at a restaurant? For decades our customers have chosen our establishments as a place to celebrate one of the more special gatherings of the year—someone’s birthday. At the end of the meal the guests at the table of the honoree expect something to happen. Maybe a small cake or de
ssert with a candle on it. Maybe a few employees coming over to sing a birthday song. Or, in a few places, a full-fledged, make them wish they had never been born, birthday extravaganza that delights everyone at the table, except the honored guest. Truth be told, unless you are at the birthday table, most birthday celebrations in restaurants are annoying to most of the other guests.
Did you ever wonder why you never actually hear the traditional birthday song being sung in a restaurant? You know the one:
Happy birthday to you,
Happy birthday to you,
Happy birthday dear (insert name),
Happy birthday to you.
I used to think that restaurants just wanted to exercise a little creativity, and showmanship, and perform their own song passed down from generations of food servers. Nothing creates camaraderie and esprit de corps among the troops more than the opportunity to go to a table and shout out a song at a table of guests. If you can get the birthday person to stand on a chair and wear a funny hat, so much the better.
The real reason that most restaurants have a different song than “Happy Birthday to You” is that it is a copyrighted piece of work that generates somewhere close to $2 million annually in royalties to the Time Warner division that holds the copyright. If you sing the song in a commercial establishment or setting, you owe money. If you think that you can make this song part of your restaurant’s daily practice and not end up paying, you haven’t met the enforcers from ASCAP (American Society for Composers, Authors and Publishers). To extend their reach, they ask the public to help them police the sanctity of the performance of this song for payment.
How did a song that was originally penned as the children’s school song “Good Morning to All” in 1893 become such a public pariah without payment? It’s a long story, but you know that it has to include clever lawyers, a money-minded corporation, and help from congress. Copyright laws used to allow a 28 year term and a 28 year extension. Originally copyrighted in 1935, the birthday song should have fallen into the public domain by 1991. However, two changes to the copyright laws have resulted in the term not expiring till 2030.
Private performances do not cause a royalty to be owed, but a public performance does. Public is defined to be “at a place open to the public, or at any place where a substantial number of persons outside of a normal circle of a family and its social acquaintances is gathered.” Among the many places that qualify under this definition are restaurants. It may be a while before you hear the old standard being performed in a restaurant. At least legally.
Happy birthday to you,
Happy birthday to you,
Please pay me my money,
Or I might have to sue.
Posted by Lane Cardwell on August 10, 2008 | Comments (7)
Reader Comments
at 8/11/2008 12:55:04 PM, Carol commented:
I think this is my favorite blog yet!! I am never surprised at how much you know Lane!
:)
at 8/11/2008 2:23:17 PM, Josh commented:
Copyrighting this song ranks right up there with the idea to market bottled water.
at 8/11/2008 2:40:01 PM, Jason commented:
Who owns the rights to the birthday candles and sparklers?
at 8/12/2008 9:47:38 AM, Chuck P. commented:
Lane, you have just put The Birthay Grinch on notice!
at 8/13/2008 9:15:56 PM, in the business commented:
Where do I sign up for a job as an enforcer? I would love to have someone pay for my meals and pay me while doing the enforcement work.
at 11/28/2008 6:48:37 AM, Chris commented:
I know that is true but I have been unable to find out how much money you have to pay in royality to use the Happy Birthday song. Do you know how much and does it depend on the venue? I have heard talk show hosts refer to is as ridiculously expensive so therefore it is not used.
at 11/28/2008 12:14:40 PM, Lane commented:
I don't know if there is an amount that can be determined without negotiating with Time-Warner. Recently, the City of Pittsburgh had to do that to sing Happy Birthday to itself in celebration of its 250th birthday.