Advocacy Collective Asserts to Have Extracted Millions of Music Files from the Streaming Giant
An activist group has stated to have scraped millions of tracks from the popular streaming service and is getting ready to publish them publicly.
Potential Impetus for Artificial Intelligence Development
Observers said the apparent leak could boost AI companies searching for data to develop their models.
An entity known as Anna’s Archive said it had obtained 86 million audio tracks from Spotify and 256 million entries of metadata such as performer and record names. Spotify, which carries more than 100 million songs, stated that the breach did not represent its full catalog.
“We have located and deactivated the malicious user accounts that were involved in unlawful scraping,” stated a Spotify spokesperson.
The Stockholm-based company, which has more than 700 million users worldwide, further explained that an inquiry into unauthorized access found a external actor scraped public metadata and used illicit tactics to bypass DRM [digital rights management].
Group's Stated Mission and Worries
The streaming service does not think the music acquired by Anna’s Archive has been made public yet. Anna’s Archive, which is known for providing links to copyright-infringing books, said in a blog it wanted to create a ‘preservation archive’ for music.
They claimed the audio files represented 99.6% of all music listened to by its listeners and would be shared via ‘peer-to-peer networks’, a method of sharing large data files online.
“Of course the service doesn’t have all the music in the world, but it’s a great beginning,” commented Anna’s Archive, which frames its purpose as “preserving humanity’s knowledge and culture”.
Model Development and Copyright Battleground
A composer and campaigner for protecting artists’ copyright, said the breached music would probably be utilized for training AI models.
“Educating models on pirated material is sadly common in the AI industry, so this accessed music is highly likely to be used training AI models,” he said.
The group's website makes references to LibGen, a vast online repository of pirated books that has allegedly been used by the parent company of Facebook to develop its systems.
A founder of an AI startup wrote on the professional network that individuals of the public could in theory “build their own private free equivalent of the service”. He said it could also enable technology firms to “train on modern music at a large volume”.
Copyright has emerged as a key issue between creatives, authors and creatives on one side and tech giants on the other.
Policy Proposals and Reactions
In the UK, creative professionals have protested against a government proposal to let AI companies utilize protected work without permission unless the owner opts out. Almost every respondent to a government call for evidence on the idea has backed artists’ concerns.
The secretary of state for technology, research and development informed parliament this month there was “no clear consensus” on the issue, noting that ministers would “use the time to get this right”. The government has pledged to make policy proposals on AI and copyright by March 2025.
