Spotify has a moderation problem on its hands at the moment. Searching for popular artists on the music streaming platform instead sometimes returns explicit videos and audio posted by unmoderated accounts. The situation recently came to light when users started reporting the problem on social media and The Verge reached out to Spotify for comment.
This isn’t the first time something like this has happened to Spotify. However, previous instances usually consisted of explicit audio clips. Accounts posting those clips have apparently grown more brazen in recent months and have started posting videos instead. The ‘Video’ tab in particular has multiple examples of explicit content being uploaded to the platform.
A Spotify representative has said that the examples recently brought to light have been removed. How these videos made it past the content moderation systems in the first place is a mystery. I’d have thought these systems would be a lot more effective now with AI powering them but apparently that might not be the case.
Image credit — PhoneArena
Spotify is hardly the only platform suffering from behavior like this: YouTube has had a similar problem for a very long time. Videos on YouTube marketed towards children have been found to contain some awful content not suitable for those ages in the slightest. Dozens of accounts pop up in a short amount of time and post hundreds of these videos to flood YouTube feeds.
The Spotify and YouTube issue is also a symptom of a larger matter in my opinion: a lack of care. Yes, both platforms do have systems in place to detect content like this before it’s uploaded but over the years I’ve seen companies care more about ridiculous copyright laws.
YouTube in particular has a big problem when it comes to this. Advertising containing explicit content runs free on the site while someone humming a song for five seconds is enough to get their video a copyright strike. Their priorities just aren’t where they should be.
The examples posted by users online may have been taken down but I’d wager that many more are soon to follow. I don’t know what these accounts get from doing this — aside from views perhaps — but they’re unlikely to stop anytime soon.
Create a free account and join our vibrant community
Register to enjoy the full PhoneArena experience. Here’s what you get with your PhoneArena account:
Abdullah loves smartphones, Virtual Reality, and audio gear. Though he covers a wide range of news his favorite is always when he gets to talk about the newest VR venture or when Apple sets the industry ablaze with another phenomenal release.
Recommended Stories
Loading Comments...
COMMENT
All comments need to comply with our
Community Guidelines
Phonearena comments rules
A discussion is a place, where people can voice their opinion, no matter if it
is positive, neutral or negative. However, when posting, one must stay true to the topic, and not just share some
random thoughts, which are not directly related to the matter.
Things that are NOT allowed:
Off-topic talk - you must stick to the subject of discussion
Offensive, hate speech - if you want to say something, say it politely
Spam/Advertisements - these posts are deleted
Multiple accounts - one person can have only one account
Impersonations and offensive nicknames - these accounts get banned
Moderation is done by humans. We try to be as objective as possible and moderate with zero bias. If you think a
post should be moderated - please, report it.
Have a question about the rules or why you have been moderated/limited/banned? Please,
contact us.
FCC OKs Cingular\'s purchase of AT&T Wireless
Things that are NOT allowed: