🔗 Share this article

A digital rights organization has claimed to have scraped a vast number of songs from the popular streaming service and is getting ready to release them online.

Potential Boost for Artificial Intelligence Training

Observers noted the seeming data breach could aid AI companies searching for material to develop their models.

A group called Anna’s Archive reported it had scraped 86 million audio tracks from Spotify and 256 million entries of associated data such as artist and record names. Spotify, which hosts more than 100 million tracks, stated that the breach did not represent its full inventory.

“We have located and deactivated the nefarious user accounts that engaged in unlawful scraping,” stated a Spotify spokesperson.

The Swedish company, which has more than 700 million subscribers worldwide, added that an investigation into unauthorised access identified a third party scraped public metadata and used illicit tactics to circumvent DRM protections.

Archive's Declared Goal and Concerns

The streaming service does not believe the audio acquired by Anna’s Archive has been released yet. Anna’s Archive, which is known for offering links to pirated books, wrote in a blog it wanted to create a ‘historical repository’ for music.

They claimed the audio files accounted for 99.6% of all music listened to by Spotify users and would be shared via ‘peer-to-peer networks’, a means of exchanging large data files online.

“Of course the service doesn’t have all the music in the world, but it’s a fantastic start,” said Anna’s Archive, which frames its mission as “safeguarding humanity’s knowledge and culture”.

Model Development and Intellectual Property Debate

A composer and campaigner for protecting artists’ rights, said the leaked music would likely be used for developing AI models.

“Training on illegally sourced material is unfortunately widespread in the AI industry, so this stolen music is almost certain to end up training AI models,” he said.

The group's website makes references to LibGen, a vast online archive of pirated books that has reportedly been leveraged by Meta to develop its AI models.

A founder of an AI startup wrote on LinkedIn that individuals of the public could in theory “build their own private free equivalent of the service”. The executive added it could also allow tech companies to “train on modern music at a large volume”.

Copyright has become a battleground between artists, authors and creatives on one side and tech giants on the other.

Policy Considerations and Responses

Across Britain, artists and writers have protested against a government suggestion to allow AI companies use copyright-protected work without permission unless the owner opts out. Virtually every participant to a government call for evidence on the proposal has supported artists’ concerns.

The secretary of state for technology, innovation and development told parliament this month there was “no clear consensus” on the matter, noting that ministers would “use the time to get this correct”. The administration has pledged to make regulatory plans on AI and copyright by next year.