stackyFACTSSinging a simple celebratory tune at a restaurant used to legally require cutting a check to a massive corporate conglomerate.
Singing a simple celebratory tune at a restaurant used to legally require cutting a check to a massive corporate conglomerate. For decades, Warner Chappell aggressively enforced a bogus copyright on the most famous birthday melody, extorting millions in licensing fees from filmmakers and restaurants. It took a massive legal battle in 2015 to finally prove the song belonged in the public domain, ending one of the longest-running corporate shakedowns in musical history.
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