Spotify Streaming Fraud Class Action Lawsuit

Are you a music artist, songwriter, producer, or distributor who receives royalty payments from Spotify? If your music has been available on Spotify since 2018, you may be owed compensation.

Baron & Budd, in partnership with Irpino Avin & Hawkins, have filed a class action lawsuit alleging Spotify systematically failed to prevent widespread streaming fraud on its platform, costing legitimate rights holders potentially hundreds of millions of dollars or more in lost royalties.

What Is Streaming Fraud?

Streaming fraud is the unlawful practice of using automated software programs called "Bots" to repeatedly stream certain songs at high speeds, creating a false appearance that those songs are being played by real listeners.

Bad actors deploy sophisticated Bot networks that create fake user accounts, use Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) to disguise their origins, and mimic human listening behavior to avoid detection. These fraudulent streams can number in the billions—artificially boosting streaming counts for select artists while legitimate artists see their rightful earnings diminished.

How does Spotify’s Revenue Pool Work?

Spotify distributes a fixed monthly revenue pool to rights holders based on their percentage of total streams. When bots generate fake streams, they dilute this pool, meaning every other rights holder receives less money even if their actual listenership hasn't changed. 

An artist whose music was streamed one million times by real fans gets less compensation, not because fewer people listened, but because the fraudulent streams reduced their share. 

Who has been Harmed?

All music rights holders who derive revenue from Spotify may have been affected, including:

• Recording artists (from emerging independent artists to established professionals)
• Songwriters who hold publishing rights
• Music producers with royalty interests
• Record labels holding rights to sound recordings
• Music publishers controlling composition rights
• Any other rights holders legally entitled to receive royalty payments from Spotify

If your music has been available on Spotify at any time since 2018 and you receive royalty payments based on streams, fraudulent activity on the platform may have reduced your rightful earnings.

With decades of experience, Irpino, Avin & Hawkins Law Firm has the expertise and resources to handle complex litigation throughout the United States. As a law firm that takes pride in remaining at the forefront of litigation, Irpino, Avin & Hawkins has helped lead many significant cases for thousands of individuals and businesses. 

Since the firm was founded in 1999, our firm has achieved substantial national acclaim for its work on cutting-edge litigation, trying cases to verdict and thousands of cases in areas of litigation as diverse and significant as dangerous pharmaceuticals, defective medical devices, environmental contamination, automobile and trucking accidents, maritime, homeowner property damage, business interruption, and consumer fraud issues. 

If you're a rights holder who has received Spotify royalties since 2018, you may be entitled to compensation. Contact us today for a free case evaluation.

Relevant Coverage

• LAWSUIT AGAINST SPOTIFY CLAIMS ‘BILLIONS’ OF DRAKE STREAMS WERE ‘FRAUDULENT’ - Rolling Stone
• Musician RBX Sues Spotify in Class Action Over Alleged Fraud, Citing 'Billions' of Drake Streams - Law.com
• Spotify Accused Of Ignoring ‘Billions’ Of Fraudulent Drake Streams—What We Know About Bot Streams – Forbes
• Real humans don’t stream Drake songs 23 hours a day, rapper suing Spotify says – Ars Techinca‍
• Spotify Failed to Act on Bot-Farmed Drake Streams, Class-Action Lawsuit Alleges – Pitchfork