Streaming fraud is one of the greatest challenges facing today’s music industry. Detailed streaming data can be difficult to access as well as interpret, so legitimate artists often have no way of knowing if their music is being streamed by bots until it is removed from DSPs. Equipping artists with the resources to fight artificial streams proactively, data-driven artist services company Amuse introduces Stream Check, an industry-first to increase data transparency and identify fraudulent streaming.
“While there are plenty of bad actors who systemize streaming fraud, artificial streaming can also happen to artists who haven’t done anything at all. An artist may cluelessly use a third-party promotion partner who turns out to be a bad choice, or legitimate tracks are added to a third-party playlist that utilizes bots without artists knowing, but the artist faces the penalties,” says Amuse Interim Chief Product Officer Erik Söderblom. “Amuse is proud to offer artists a proactive solution that puts them in the driver’s seat with all the tools they need to monitor and protect their catalog and livelihood.”
Stream Check takes a nuanced approach to artificial streaming, educating artists about its consequences. While other distributors have adopted a reactionary strike system, or even monetized the possibility to reupload taken down music, Amuse offers a proactive alternative: a colorful catalog health bar that indicates what share of an artist’s streams were deemed artificial by Spotify during the last month.
