At least one million manipulated tracks are present on streaming platforms according to a new report by tech company Pex.
A study by Pex in November 2023 shows that more than one million tracks on streaming platforms have been altered for speed. Some platforms where these “modified” tracks exist include Apple Music, Spotify, and TIDAL.
1% of All Songs on Streaming Platforms Are Modified Audio
The Pex report showed an alarming number of audio files on streaming platforms that are modified. The report found that at least 1% of all songs on digital streaming platforms were modified audio.
This percentage translates to over a million unlicensed and manipulated songs. The issue with these songs is that they take revenue away from the copyright holders. Those who have manipulated the songs end up scooping a large share of these revenues, which can be as high as millions of dollars.
One of the leading music streaming platforms, Spotify, has noted the menace caused by these platforms. An estimate provided by Spotify shows that tracks with low popularity among song lovers account for only 0.5% of the royalties pool.
The revenue generated by these low-popularity tracks can be as high as $40 million annually. Given the large share of revenue going towards those owning the modified audio, it is clear that streaming platforms should invest in innovative technology to prevent these cases from happening.
“If the creators of these modified songs haven’t licensed the original tracks, but are earning royalties from DSP streams, this is music fraud that could be taking millions from the rightful copyright owners,” the report said.
The report also highlighted some examples of these manipulated tracks. These songs include a sped-up version of “Bloody Mary” by Lady Gaga with 25 million streams. The other modified audio is “Heartbeat” by Childish Gambino which has 19 million streams.
The reason why these manipulated tracks are raising concern is because they do not possess legal licensing. These tracks infringe on copyright, and they inhibit the ability of the owners of these songs to collect royalties on the streams garnered from the music.
Modified Audio Content Should Be Licensed
The CEO of Pex, Rasty Turek, opined that there was a large number of people who enjoyed these modified songs. Therefore, he believes that as there was legitimate interest in this content, people should have access to it.
However, sharing such content needed proper attribution. Ensuring some form of accountability to those sharing modified audio was the responsibility of the streaming platforms and not of the artists behind these songs.
Streaming platform Spotify has been making efforts to combat manipulated audio on its platform. It ensure that royalties go directly to the artists. This modified audio is also affecting royalty allocation as this month, around a quarter of the music on streaming platforms not play at all.
Spotify has also announced a policy change. The streaming platform said that songs need to have a minimum of 1,000 streams before earning any royalties. This policy seeks to make the policy of earning royalties fair to everyone.
This issue is also raising concerns with regulators. The European Union advocated for changes to streaming platforms and demanded high royalty payments for artists. It has also called for proper allocation of metadata to make the work of artists more visible.
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