JAY-Z's Tidal Streaming Numbers Aren't Adding Up

According to Hits Daily Double Jay-Z’s Tidal is experiencing virtually no growth early in its third year, and is being slagged for its highly questionable reporting of streams, dating back to the debut of Kanye’s exclusive, streaming-only The Life of Pablo in February 2016—causing him to sue for unpaid royalties based on the reported numbers—and extending to Jay’s 4:44 this July.

How can Tidal get away with reporting numbers equal to or greater than Spotify and Apple Music when it has a 2% marketshare? 4:44 generated 68m streams at Tidal in one week, a significantly greater number than Apple Music (Spotify wasn’t given the album), according to Billboard sources. As a consequence, John Amato is taking major heat about the once-credible trade’s lack of clarity over the rules of engagement.

But that fiasco has since been overshadowed by a far more troubling revelation, as Tidal put Meek Mill’s new album in front of its paywall. No login or credentials are required to access it; anyone with a vested interest could game the system via bots to manipulate the chart. Tidal thus has put itself in the center of a potential firestorm.

Word at presstime is that the streamery may stop reporting its numbers to chart services. How might the biz respond? Nobody wants to tangle with Jay-Z, a huge player who, as head of the Roc Nation empire, enjoys relationships with top execs and superstars across the biz—in addition to being a huge artist and mega-celebrity.

This isn't the first time Tidal has been accused of inflating numbers. Back in January a investigation was published by Norwegian business daily Dagens Næringsliv alleges that Tidal, the music streaming service co-owned by Jay-Z and more than a dozen other music stars, has persistently inflated its subscriber numbers in statements to the media, the public, and investors.

The authors of the investigation, Markus Tobiassen and Kjetil Saeter, based their findings on interviews with Tidal staff and internal documents (Tidal began life as part of Aspiro, a Norwegian company).

“In April 2016, one month after [a] press release issued by the company claiming three million members, Tidal made payments to the record labels for around 850,000 subscribers,” reads a translation of the report provided to Digital Music News. “The figure reported internally by Tidal in April 2016 is 1.2 million subscribers.”

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