Labels and distributors would have to apply ‘Transparency Tags’ to metadata for any AI-generated artwork, tracks, compositions, or music videos available on Apple Music.
Apple Music users may soon be able to tell whether their new favorite tune is AI-generated.
The streamer has launched new metadata “Transparency Tags” that will require distributors and record labels to disclose the use of AI in songs, Music Business Worldwide reports.
Metadata refers to the basic information attached to a music file when it is uploaded to a streaming platform. This usually includes details such as the song title, artist name, album title, genre, and other data that users see in the Now Playing tab and elsewhere.
With Transparency Tags, Apple Music will have labels and distributors disclose whether they used AI in the artwork, tracks, compositions, or music videos. The tag for each category applies when “a material portion” of the work was generated using AI. For an AI-generated song, they’d enable the track tag, and for AI-generated lyrics, they’d use the composition tag.
The catch here, though, is that Apple leaves it to its music partners to decide what qualifies as AI content. “Proper tagging of content is the first step in giving the music industry the data and tools needed to develop thoughtful policies around AI… and we believe labels and distributors must take an active role in reporting when the content they deliver is created using AI,” Apple told industry partners this week.
In September, Spotify announced a similar feature for labels, distributors, and music partners.
These updates come as more AI platforms let users create songs from prompts. With Gemini, for example, users can now generate 30-second audio clips.
Notably, AI-generated content still remains ineligible for copyright in the US.
