Happy Birthday may enter the public domain

If the Eldred v. Ashcroft Supreme Court case to throw out the latest copyright extension is ruled unconstituional, the song "Happy Birthday" will enter the public domain. That means that all the TGIFriday's-style theme restaurants can finally ditch their alarmingly sucky birthday songs — sung by the staff to get around having to get the ASCAP performance license necessary to lawfully perform "Happy Birthday" in public — and go back to the old standard.

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