Sony Music is stepping up its fight against streaming fraud as the music industry faces a growing wave of artificial streams and AI-generated tracks impersonating established artists.
The company told the Financial Times that it had asked streaming platforms to remove more than 260,000 tracks by the end of September 2026 for allegedly using unauthorized AI-generated versions of its artists’ voices and likenesses. That figure is almost double the more than 135,000 takedown requests Sony had made by the end of March.
Sony says the problem is happening at scale, with AI-generated songs mimicking both current and legacy artists, including names such as Harry Styles, Adele, Britney Spears and Michael Jackson. The company argues that these tracks can mislead listeners, damage artists’ rights and create additional challenges for legitimate music competing for attention on streaming services.
But unauthorized AI music is only part of the wider problem.
Streaming fraud also involves the mass creation of songs specifically designed to generate artificial plays. Fraudsters can use automated accounts, or bots, to repeatedly stream music and collect royalties that would otherwise be distributed among legitimate artists and rights holders.
Sony Music’s global digital business president, Dennis Kooker, has previously warned that fraudulent activity could represent as much as 10% of tracks across streaming services. Industry estimates cited by the Financial Times suggest streaming fraud could be costing the music business as much as $2.2 billion annually.
The scale of the problem has also been highlighted by criminal cases. In March, U.S. prosecutors announced that North Carolina man Michael Smith had pleaded guilty to using hundreds of thousands of AI-generated songs and automated accounts to produce billions of fraudulent streams, generating more than $8 million in royalties.
Sony is also supporting a broader industry response. In September, the company joined the Streaming Integrity Initiative, launched by IFPI alongside major labels, distributors and music companies. The initiative establishes baseline measures including stronger identity verification, content vetting, fraud detection, intelligence sharing and action against repeat offenders.
The crackdown comes as AI dramatically increases the amount of music entering streaming platforms. Deezer reported this year that it was receiving tens of thousands of fully AI-generated tracks every day, while finding that as much as 85% of streams on fully AI-generated music in 2025 were fraudulent.
For Sony and other major music companies, the issue is therefore bigger than simply removing unauthorized songs. The industry is increasingly focused on protecting the royalty pool itself, ensuring that artificial plays do not divert revenue from artists and songwriters whose music is being consumed by genuine listeners.
Sony says it will continue enforcing its artists’ rights and expects streaming platforms to act quickly when infringing or fraudulent material is identified.
As AI-generated music becomes easier and cheaper to produce, the battle over fake streams, impersonation and royalty manipulation is likely to become an increasingly important issue for labels, distributors, streaming platforms and independent artists.
