An activist group has claimed to have harvested millions of songs from Spotify and is preparing to release them online.
Potential Boost for Artificial Intelligence Training
Industry experts noted the apparent data breach could boost AI companies looking for data to train their models.
A group called Anna’s Archive reported it had obtained 86 million music files from the platform and 256 million rows of metadata such as performer and record names. The company, which hosts more than 100 million tracks, stated that the leak did not constitute its entire catalog.
“We have identified and deactivated the nefarious user accounts that were involved in unlawful scraping,” said a Spotify representative.
The Stockholm-based company, which has more than 700 million subscribers worldwide, added that an inquiry into unauthorized access found a external actor scraped public metadata and employed questionable tactics to circumvent DRM [digital rights management].
Group's Stated Goal and Worries
The streaming service does not believe the music acquired by Anna’s Archive has been made public yet. Anna’s Archive, which is recognized for providing links to pirated books, wrote in a blog it wanted to create a ‘historical repository’ for music.
They claimed the music files accounted for 99.6% of all music listened to by its listeners and would be distributed via ‘peer-to-peer networks’, a means of sharing large digital files online.
“Of course the service doesn’t have all the music in the world, but it’s a fantastic beginning,” commented Anna’s Archive, which frames its mission as “safeguarding humanity’s information and culture”.
AI Training and Copyright Debate
Ed Newton-Rex for defending artists’ copyright, remarked the leaked music would probably be used for developing artificial intelligence systems.
“Training on illegally sourced data is sadly widespread in the tech sector, so this accessed music is almost certain to be used instructing AI models,” he stated.
The group's website makes references to LibGen, a vast online repository of pirated books that has allegedly been used by Meta to develop its AI models.
The co-founder of an artificial intelligence company wrote on LinkedIn that members of the public could in principle “build their own private free equivalent of the service”. He added it could also allow technology firms to “educate models on contemporary music at a large volume”.
Copyright has become a key issue between creatives, writers and creatives on one side and tech giants on the other.
Policy Proposals and Reactions
Across Britain, creative professionals have protested against a government suggestion to let AI companies use copyright-protected work without consent unless the owner opts out. Virtually every respondent to a government consultation on the proposal has supported artists’ apprehensions.
The secretary of state for science, innovation and technology told parliament this month there was “no clear consensus” on the matter, adding that ministers would “take the time to get this right”. The government has pledged to make policy proposals on AI and copyright by March 2025.
