"Streaming manipulation is totally unacceptable"

Stream manipulation is when a person seeks payment for streams where any actual listening hasn’t occurred, which leads to a redistribution of revenue from rights holders to cheaters. It goes without saying that any form of manipulation of streams with the intention of earning revenue at the expense of another rights holder is completely unacceptable.

Stim licenses its music through ICE Services in England and ICE is working intensively with this issue on Stim's behalf. ICE has identified several instances of suspected stream manipulation and has initiated a dialogue with streaming services such as Spotify, Google Play and YouTube to ensure that these platforms take their responsibility.

The reports that constitute the basis of our royalty distribution arrive at our end no earlier than one month after the playback has taken place. It is important that the streaming services act quickly to correct any irregularities when suspicious streams are detected.

In addition to the review that ICE is conducting, Stim has its own methods of ensuring that our royalty payments end up in the bank accounts of the correct rightsholders. We use methods ranging from machine learning to prediction models that can find songs that generate income in an unusual pattern.

If you, as affiliated to Stim, have any thoughts or concerns about this, you are most welcome to contact us. We read all the comments that come in and we appreciate all feedback.

Sincerely,

Karsten Dyhrberg Nielsen CEO at STIM