AI, bot farms and innocent indie victims: how music streaming became a hotbed of fraud and fakery

There is a battle gripping the music business today around the manipulation of streaming services – and innocent indie artists are the collateral damage. Northern Irish rock band Final Thirteen had some of their music taken off streaming services due to a spike in the tens of thousands. He tracked it back: TNW Music tracks were being added to manipulated playlists. “With streaming services, it’s almost impossible to [appeal] through them,” she sighs. Streaming services and distributors now accept this battle is about containment rather than total elimination.