The Los Angeles Times reported on Sept. 21st, "None of the companies
that have collected royalties on the "Happy Birthday" song for the past
80 years held a valid copyright claim to one of the most popular songs
in history, a federal judge in Los Angeles ruled on Tuesday. ... Judge
George H. King ruled that a copyright filed by the Summy Co. in 1935
granted only the rights to specific piano arrangements of the music,
not the actual song."

Ref.  http://www.shadesofgraylaw.com/media/00065570.pdf  and
http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-happy-birthday-song-lawsuit-decision-20150922-story.html 

Robbie Rhodes - MMDigest

 [ There's too much legal mumbo-jumbo in the PDF file for me to get a
 [ clear picture of what might happen now.  Will the defendants have to
 [ return the royalties they collected?  Could the defendants successfully
 [ appeal this ruling?   In the meantime, I hope to stop hearing the
 [ "hokey" substitutes for "Happy Birthday" in restaurants and movies!  --Jody