Abstract

This chapter discusses the ways in which musical databases at streaming services are – or can potentially be – undermined either in computational form or via ingenious human actions. The main reason for purchasing manipulated promotion in the form of fake followers, likes or listeners are, for example, related to streaming services’ swelling back catalogue – of unheard music. One fifth of Spotify’s catalogue of 20 million songs haven’t once been listened to by anyone. Through different aggregators, content at streaming services and platforms are, thus, semi-open to contradictory forms of automated music, bot logics, fake listeners, various proxy deceits, piracy and even hacks. The chapter discusses how streaming services can become insubordinate if various forms of music automatization increase. The archival mode of online media, in short, runs the risk, or (depending on the perspective) has a techno-inherent ability to undermine classical notions of databases/archives/collections as trusted and secured repositories of material and/or cultural content.