Lawsuit Claims Spotify Ignored Bot-Farmed Drake Streams

A recent class-action lawsuit filed against Spotify has raised serious allegations regarding streaming fraud. The case centers around claims that the music streaming giant has failed to address billions of fake streams tied to prominent artist Drake.

Lawsuit Details

The lawsuit was submitted to a California federal court on November 2. RBX, a rapper, leads the class action, which includes other individuals claiming similar grievances. The central argument is that Spotify’s royalty distribution system disadvantages artists with legitimate streaming numbers. When inflated figures are counted, true artists receive a smaller share of Spotify’s royalty pool.

Streaming Fraud Allegations

• The lawsuit claims that a “non-trivial percentage” of Drake’s 37 billion streams are attributed to bot accounts.
• Data indicates abnormal VPN usage linked to spikes in streams, notably during 2024.
• For example, about 250,000 streams of Drake’s track “No Face” were traced back to Turkey even though they were registered in the UK.

If proven, these allegations suggest that Drake has received substantial royalties that should rightfully go to other artists, amounting to hundreds of millions of dollars lost due to this fraudulent activity. The lawsuit implies that Spotify benefits from these inflated streaming numbers, as they enhance user engagement and advertising potential.

Spotify’s Response

A Spotify spokesperson stated that the company does not benefit from artificial streaming practices. They emphasized their commitment to combating fraud through advanced detection methods that include removing fake streams and imposing penalties. However, the lawsuit claims that the current system provides little incentive for Spotify to address these issues seriously.

In a related case from 2024, Spotify reportedly faced a fraudulent artist who had garnered $10 million in royalties but only extracted $60,000 from the service, demonstrating Spotify’s capability to manage artificial streaming comprehensively.

This lawsuit provokes important questions about the integrity of the streaming music industry and its impact on legitimate artists.