Norwegian Newspaper Claims Tidal Excessively Exaggerated Numbers In Favor Of Beyonce And Kanye West

-blogged by @theRealAlexisDanielle

Since its arrival Tidal has been on a roll with a string of popular playlists, exclusive release, and intimate concert livestreams. Now, the streaming service has found itself in hot water surrounding Beyoncè and Kanye West.

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According to Norwegian newspaper Dagens Næringsliv, Tidal deliberately inflated the streaming numbers of Beyoncé’s “Lemonade” and Kanye’s “Life of Pablo.”

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The newspaper began to investigate Tidal’s self-released stats back in January. The investigation was apparently launched in response to claims that “Lemonade” had been streamed over 300m times in its first 15 days on Tidal. The company’s claim that “The Life Of Pablo” was streamed 250 m in 10 days also played a factor.

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After digging up documents with the help of a third party, it was found that Tidal allegedly drastically manipulated numbers and stats as it pertains to streaming.

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“Beyoncé’s and Kanye West’s listener numbers on TIDAL have been manipulated to the tune of several hundred million false plays… which has generated massive royalty payouts at the expense of other artists,” the paper said.

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The paper says its claims are supported by a hard drive that contains figures, user information, and song and artist credentials.

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Based on information on the drive and interviews with supposed users, It was allegedly found that the service exaggerated individual user plays by hundreds.

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The claims have not been confirmed and Tidal released the following statement to Pitchfork regarding the issue:

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“This is a smear campaign from a publication that once referred to our employee as an “Israeli Intelligence officer” and our owner as a “crack dealer.” We expect nothing less from them than this ridiculous story, lies and falsehoods. The information was stolen and manipulated and we will fight these claims vigorously.