The 4 Billion Dollar Fraud Crisis in Streaming & AI Music with Andrew Batey
1 hr 10 min
Streaming services hand labels a spreadsheet with a number in a cell and no receipts. Andrew Batey built the technology to check it, and found a fraud problem nobody knew existed. Jonathan sits down with Andrew, co-founder of Vancouver's BeatDapp, to explain how a real-time audit tool for streaming counts turned into one of the music industry's biggest fraud-fighting operations. They cover why audits can miss 20–35% of plays, how fraudsters hide behind unsuspecting artists (34,000 flagged, only 3 actually guilty), the landmark US streaming fraud case, and the hacked prison tablets that became a fraud machine. They also dig into AI music: why real AI tracks average about one stream per listener, why heavy AI use so often points to fraud, and where Andrew thinks AI is genuinely useful for artists. Plus SoundExchange, BeatDapp's Battle of the Bands, how Andrew won his first pro fight and ended up buying a brewery, and why Jonathan will never sign a band just because it's already viral. Subscribe to I Hate Simkin for bi-weekly deep dives into iconic Canadian music stories, behind-the-scenes label moments, and artist's career turning points. Likes, comments, and feedback help massively — thank you for supporting the show. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
