"Happy Birthday to You" is copyrighted, and public performances of the song likely count as copyright infringement. That is the reason that most major chains h

"Happy Birthday to You" is copyrighted, and public performances of the song likely count as copyright infringement. That is the reason that most major chains have their own version of the birthday song. I am not claiming that Warner is going to send a paramilitary team into your home the moment you sing the song; it is, however, a commonly given example of how out-of-control the copyright system has become.