Key Highlights
- Nearly all of Spotify has been scraped by Anna’s Archive.
- The archive includes metadata for 256 million tracks and audio for 86 million songs.
- The total size of the archive is nearly 300TB, being shared via torrents.
- Spotify has identified and disabled the user accounts responsible for the scraping.
The Internet Just Made a 300TB Copy of Spotify!
In what can only be described as an unprecedented move, a group called Anna’s Archive claims to have scraped nearly all of Spotify’s vast music library. The news sent shockwaves through the tech and entertainment industries, raising questions about copyright law, data preservation, and user privacy.
A Massive Archive Unveiled
According to a new blog post, Anna’s Archive has archived metadata for 256 million tracks and audio files for 86 million songs. This represents around 99.6% of all listens on Spotify, making it the largest publicly available music metadata database in the world. The full archive weighs in at just under 300TB and is being distributed via torrents, sorted by ity.
The group frames this project as a “preservation archive” for music.
They argue that while songs are backed up well, huge chunks of lesser-known music could disappear if streaming platforms pull the plug or lose licenses. By archiving such a vast amount of data, Anna’s Archive hopes to ensure that modern music history is not lost.
Spotify’s Response
In an update, Spotify shared its stance on this monumental scraping. The platform identified and disabled the user accounts used for the “unlawful” scraping. They also stated that they have implemented new safeguards against such attacks and are actively monitoring for suspicious behavior.
“Since day one, we have stood with the artist community against piracy,” said a spokesperson for Spotify. “We are actively working with our industry partners to protect creators and defend their rights.” The company went on to confirm that only some of its audio files were accessed during this scraping incident, but Anna’s Archive claims it was able to archive music representing 99.6% of all listens on the platform.
Legal Implications
The legality of this massive data collection is a hot topic. Spotify licenses most of the music on its platform from record labels and rights holders under strict legal terms. Mass-scraping audio files and redistributing them via torrents clearly violates these terms, as well as copyright law in many countries.
Even if Anna’s Archive insists this project serves preservation purposes, copyright law generally does not make exceptions for such “good intentions.” It wouldn’t be surprising to see Spotify and major record companies respond with takedown requests or legal threats.
The real question is whether they can successfully remove the scraped data from torrents.
As of now, it’s unclear how much of the platform was affected by this scraping incident, and whether any legal action will follow. The outcome remains to be seen, but one thing is certain: this event has highlighted the complex challenges faced by streaming platforms in balancing user access with copyright protection.
Stay tuned for further developments as the legal battle unfolds and the implications of this monumental data collection come into clearer focus.
