A Green Paper on AI, Data Governance, and Metadata Policies for Europe's Music Ecosystem

A G een Pape on AI, Da a
Go e nance, and Me ada a Policies o
Eu ope’s Music Ecosys em
P ac ical S eps Towa ds a Decen alised and Open Eu opean Music
Obse a o y
Daniel An al, CFA
2024-11-22
Table o con en s
In oduc ion 4
Glossa y 9
Music e ms...................................... 9
Da a e ms ...................................... 10
AI&Sys emsTe ms................................. 11
Da ap o ec ion e ms ................................ 13
Da a cu a ion and collec ion e ms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
S a is ical e ms ................................... 14
Regis e s, au ho i ies, s anda ds and iden i ie s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
O ganisa ions..................................... 17
O he abb e ia ions ................................. 18
1 Policy con ex and p oblem map 19
1.1 Th ee s uc u al p essu es . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
1.2 Na ional and Eu opean pilo s as ancho s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
1.2.1 The Slo ak Comp ehensi e Music Da abase (SKCMDb) . . . . . . 21
1.2.2 Unlabel ................................. 23
1.3 Ques o efficiency............................... 23
1.4 Po en ialsolu ions ............................... 26
2 Fixing Music Da a a he Sou ce 28
2.1 Discussion.................................... 28
2.1.1 S uc u al agmen a ion o da a and alue lows . . . . . . . . . . 28
2.1.2 Cos ba ie s in documen a ion and claims . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
2.1.3 Why one g and collec ion model will no wo k . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
2.1.4 Legacyme ada a............................ 32
2.1.5 Named-en i y esolu ion, a ibu ion, and p i acy . . . . . . . . . . 35
2.2 Policyp oposals................................. 36
2.2.1 Reducing edundancy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
2.2.2 Reconciling a ibu ion and p i acy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
2.2.3 P agma ic me ada a alignmen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
3 Open Music Obse a o y: Building a Sha ed Music Da a Space 42
3.1 Discussion.................................... 43
3.1.1 Why cen alisa ion is a u ile model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
3.1.2 Open Da a Di ec i e: igh wi hou means . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
3.1.3 Why olun a y wo ka ounds do no scale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
2
3.1.4 Public in as uc u es bypass music’s eal da a lows . . . . . . . . 47
3.1.5 Subsidia i y and in as uc u es o scaling music da a . . . . . . . 48
3.1.6 Economies o scale in me ada a . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
3.2 PolicyP oposals ................................ 50
3.2.1 Wo k low playbooks and p o enance ails . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
3.2.2 Fede a ed in as uc u e as a cos and go e nance solu ion . . . . . 53
3.2.3 Legal, s anda ds, and unding le e s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
3.2.4 Alignmen wi h he Eu opean Open Science Cloud . . . . . . . . . 55
4 AI ha Wo ks o Music, No Agains I 56
4.1 Discussion.................................... 59
4.1.1 S uc u al p oblems o music businesses o apply AI . . . . . . . . 59
4.1.2 Eu opean egula ion ha misses he poin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
4.1.3 Policy issues a he in e sec ion o AI, copy igh , and GDPR . . . . 62
4.1.4 AI design wi hou awa eness o limi s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
4.1.5 Un eezing ozen asse s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
4.1.6 AI suppo o in es men in o new epe oi e asse s . . . . . . . . 65
4.2 Policy P oposals: Aligning AI wi h Go e nance and Value C ea ion . . . . 65
4.2.1 EU-Le el Policy: Compass and Gua d ails . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
4.2.2 Indus y-Le el Policy: S anda ds and Collabo a ion . . . . . . . . . 66
4.2.3 O ganisa ional-Le el Policy: Playbooks o CMOs, Publishe s,
A chi es................................. 66
4.2.4 Cu a i e AI and Repa a i e AI as a Remedia ion Solu ion . . . . . 67
4.2.5 Lowe ing Documen a ion Ba ie s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
4.2.6 Obse a o y: Eu opean = Open . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
4.2.7 The Open Music Obse a o y as a Collec i e Gua d ail . . . . . . . 69
5 Wha Eu ope Should Do Nex o Music Da a & AI 71
Sou ces & Fu he Reading 73
3
In oduc ion
The e a e musical wo ks ha a e ein e p e ed housands o imes ac oss cen u ies. A
symphony by Bee ho en o a olk song om he Bal ic coas can be hea d again and again,
each pe o mance p oducing a new eading o some hing ha ne e becomes “ inal.” The
same is ue o sound eco dings. Some pe ennial eco dings a e edisco e ed a e six y
yea s, emas e ed, and b ough in o ci cula ion o new audiences.
Music asse s, in o he wo ds, ha e an unusually long li ecycle. This is jus as ue o
hei documen a ion — he me ada a ha accompanies hem om c ea ion o a chi ing.
Me ada a does no eeze a wo k o eco ding in ime. Ins ead, i e ol es wi h i : om
he momen o igh s egis a ion, h ough comme cial dis ibu ion and playlis ing, o
p ese a ion in a lib a y o a chi e. Each new in e p e a ion, emix, o eissue gene a es
new me ada a; and each new in o ma ion sys em demands new connec ions and con ex s.
ĹWhy his G een Pape ma e s o music p o essionals?
• S eaming has cen alised powe in pla o ms, bu le igh s-holde s wi h mic o-
oyal ies and huge admin bu dens.
• Me ada a mis akes mean los e enue — each unlinked ISRC o ISWC is money
le on he able.
• AI is al eady changing music — ei he i helps you ix documen a ion and ge
paid, o i loods he sys em wi h un acked wo ks.
• Eu ope needs ede a ed, coope a i e solu ions so independen s, CMOs, and
a chi es can compe e on ai e e ms.
4
The e is a ely a single momen when music me ada a can be conside ed comple e. Me a-
da a, like music i sel , is open o ein e p e a ion. A name can be econciled wi h an
iden i ie ; a wo k can be linked o a new pe o mance; a eco ding can be embedded in
new ile o ma s. Each ac o documen a ion adds laye s o meaning and makes he music
in o ma i e in a new en i onmen .
This is no an in i a ion o ein en he wheel. We can ead Bee ho en’s ea ly p in s as
well as I is Szeghy’s 21s -cen u y sco es because music no a ion — a s anda dised way o
p esen ing he me ada a o musical wo ks — has emained ema kably s able o cen u ies.
No a ion shows ha s anda disa ion can endu e, and ha sha ed con en ions make music
legible ac oss ime, geog aphy, and ins i u ions.
5

The in en ion o he compu e , and la e he in e ne , in oduced new ways o documen
and ansmi music. These inno a ions b ough powe ul efficiencies: iden i ie s like he
ISRC and ISWC, digi al dis ibu ion pipelines, and ne wo ked ca alogues ha e enabled he
global ci cula ion o music a unp eceden ed scale. Bu hey also c ea ed new agmen a-
ion. S anda ds p oli e a ed, iden i ie s ailed o in e connec , and wo k lows designed o
one pu pose o en b oke down in ano he . Wha was in ended as p og ess some imes le
behind a mess o o e lapping, incompa ible, o incomple e me ada a — a mess ha now
needs o be clea ed up.
ĹNo e
This G een Pape is an ea ly-s age policy documen , p epa ed in line wi h Open
Policy Analysis and he Ho izon Eu ope Da a Managemen Guidelines. I
has been eleased ea ly o allow consul a ion, inco po a e s akeholde inpu , and
p o ide a anspa en de elopmen p ocess. This G een Pape ex ends he analysis
de eloped in he i s OpenMusE policy b ie on music me ada a mains eaming and
EU law (Deli e able D5.6), and i s indings a e condensed in o he second policy b ie
(Deli e able D5.7), which inco po a es wide s akeholde consul a ions.1
T anspa ency no e: Following he p inciples o Open Policy Analysis, all ela ed
deli e ables and echnical documen a ion a e publicly accessible o os e b oad en-
gagemen and ensu e a clea audi ail. Suppo ing documen s o each chap e o his
G een Pape a e e e enced in simila boxes. The cu en e sion (and u u e Whi e
Pape d a s) is a ailable a h ps://zenodo.o g/ eco ds/17075796. S anda dised old-
e s, igu es, and bibliog aphies a e a ailable a h ps://gi hub.com/da aobse a o y-
eu/open-music-da a-whi e-pape .
Funding acknowledgemen : This p ojec has ecei ed unding om he Eu opean
Union’s Ho izon Eu ope p og amme unde G an Ag eemen No. 101095295. The
iews exp essed a e hose o he au ho s only and do no necessa ily e lec hose o
he Eu opean Commission o i s agencies.2
Ci a ion no e: When ci ing his G een Pape , please use he la es e sioned DOI
a ailable on Zenodo, and include he da e o access i e e ing o ma e ial hos ed on
ou Gi Hub eposi o y.3This is an ea ly e sion ( 0.84.)
6
Ou documen has been p esen ed and discussed wi h indus y specialis s on he ollowing
o ums:
• Big Da a Value Associa ion, Gaia-X: Da aweek²�: In oducing a new Eu opean music
da aspace4
• Echoes/ECCH:
• Hunga ian s akeholde s in e es ed in eplica ion o he Slo ak pilo e sions 5
• CISAC: P o ec ing C ea o s’ Righ s in he AI E a: OpenMusE a he Eu opean
Commi ee Mee ing, Vilnius, 29-30 Ap il 6.
• The Fai MusE - P elude o a ai e music indus y Fai MusE p ojec 7
• IAMIC 8: The In e na ional Associa ion o Music In o ma ion Cen es and se e al
key membe s o he o ganisa ion.
• IAML: The In e na ional Associa ion o Music Lib a ies, A chi es and Documen a-
ion Cen e s and se e al na ional chap e s and key membe s 9.
3The Policy B ie 1: Music Me ada a Mains eaming and EU Law (Sen leben e al. 2024) p o ides he
legal and ins i u ional aming o me ada a mains eaming in Eu opean copy igh and da a law. The
p esen G een Pape builds on ha ounda ion wi h a li ecycle- and so e eign y-o ien ed concep ual
amewo k, es ed in pilo s such as he Slo ak Comp ehensi e Music Da abase. I s key ecommenda-
ions a e u he condensed in OpenMusE Policy B ie 2: An Open, Scalable Da a- o-Policy Pipeline o
Eu opean Music Ecosys ems (Deli e able D5.7, 2025) (Open Music Eu ope Conso ium 2025), which
in eg a es b oade s akeholde consul a ions (CISAC, IAMIC, IAML, Fai MusE, Music360, ECCCH
o ums, among o he s) and ansla es hem in o policy ac ions o EU ins i u ions.
3This documen has been p epa ed by Open Music Eu ope (OpenMusE) p ojec pa ne s as an accoun
o wo k ca ied ou wi hin he amewo k o his con ac . Any dissemina ion o esul s mus indica e
ha i e lec s only he au ho ’s iew and ha he Commission Agency is no esponsible o any use
ha may be made o he in o ma ion i con ains. Nei he P ojec Coo dina o , no any signa o y pa y
o Open Music Eu ope (OpenMusE) P ojec Conso ium Ag eemen , no any pe son ac ing on behal
o any o hem:
(a) makes any wa an y o ep esen a ion wha soe e , exp ess o implied, (i) wi h espec o he use
o any in o ma ion, appa a us, me hod, p ocess, o simila i em disclosed in his documen , including
me chan abili y and i ness o a pa icula pu pose, o (ii) ha such use does no in inge on o in e e e
wi h p i a ely owned igh s, including any pa y’s in ellec ual p ope y, o (iii) ha his documen is
sui able o any pa icula use ’s ci cums ance; o
(b) assumes esponsibili y o any damages o o he liabili y wha soe e (including any consequen ial
damages, e en i ad ised o he possibili y) esul ing om you selec ion o use o his documen o
any in o ma ion, appa a us, me hod, p ocess, o simila i em disclosed he ein.
3Always use he la es e sioned DOI when ci ing his G een Pape , a ailable ia Zenodo. I you ely on
suppo ing ma e ial hos ed in he Gi Hub eposi o y, please add he da e o access in you e e ence.
The igu es and cha s can be ound on FigSha e and may be eused sepa a ely, ci ing hei DOI and,
o con ex , he G een Pape ha con ains hem.
4Jun 5, 2024, Da aweek²�, Leu en, Belgium.
5Fede a ion possibili ies o he Slo ak music da a sha ing space in Hunga y (An al 2024a)
6P o ec ing C ea o s’ Righ s in he AI E a: OpenMusE a he Eu opean Commi ee Mee ing, ou p e-
sen a ion (Mikš 2025)
7We ecei ed useu ul eedback o his G een Ppae om he p ojec and see u he syne gies in p esen ing
ou policy indings oge he . h ps:// ai muse.eu/abou /
8We p esen ed and discussed hese ideas a he In e na ional Associa ion o Music In o ma ion Cen es
on he Gene al Assembly and Annual Con e ence 2024 on No embe 21, 2024, a Music Aus ia, Vienna.
See he p esen a ion and i s pos e o ma (An al 2024d).
9We p esen ed and discussed hese ideas a he In e na ional Associa ion o Music Lib a ies, A chi es
and Documen a ion Cen e s on he Gene al Assembly and Annual Con e ence 7 h and 9 h o July 2025
in Salzbu g, Aus ia. See he p esen a ion and i s pos e o ma (An al 2025a, 2025b).
7
• Poli onia: In Oc obe 2023 Poli onia in i ed a ew s akeholde s - Podiumkuns .ne ,
he Open Music Obse a o y, Uni Fi enze, IC Fonseca School, Joséphine Si-
monno /PRISM, Ma ia Luisa Onida/D’Is uzione Supe io e Leona do Da Vinci,
Ca negie Hall A chi e, Municipali y o Bologna - o a wo k session, which ga e
us a g ea oppo uni y o s eng hen he me ada a amewo k o ou policy
ecommenda ions and in as uc u e planning.
• Music Fu u es: he AHRC C ea i e Indus ies Clus e p ojec MusicFu u es in he
Uni ed Kingdom.
• Slo ak na ional s akeholde s in e es ed in cul u al da a.10
• Wikimedia communi y and de elope s11.
• Eu opean music indus y s akeholde s on LineCheck 2025 12
The CITF’s Fi s P ojec Repo (Minis y o Educa ion and Cul u e, Finland, 2025) ali-
da es and ex ends he policy logic o OpenMusE’s G een Pape . While he CITF de ines
c oss-sec o al equi emen s o us wo hy, machine- eadable copy igh in as uc u es in
he AI e a, OpenMusE p o ides a conc e e domain implemen a ion wi hin he Eu opean
music ecosys em—demons a ing how in e ope able iden i ie s, FAIR p inciples, and ed-
e a ed go e nance can unc ion in p ac ice13.
10Based on a memo andum o unde s anding wi h a b oad ange o public and p i a e s akeholde s,
(Minis e s o kul ú y SR and Open Music Eu ope 2023) we de eloped a model o enewing s a is ical
p oduc ion o be e cul u al and music s a is ics (An al 2023).
11Ou wo k was p esen ed in he Technology session o he Wikimedia CEE Mee ing 2024 in Is anbul,
and he Wikimedia CEE Mee ing 2025 in Thessaloniki, and he Wikida a Con 2025 online; we ha e
buil ela ionships wi h a ious na ional chap e s and he Wikida a and Abs ac Wikipedia eams,
and joined he Wikida a On ology Cleanup Task Fo ce and he Wikida a Me eology Task Fo ce o
help he coo dian ion o ou open sou ce echnology, da a cu a ion and dissemina ion e o s. (An al
2024b, 2025c; An al, Pigozne, and Fede ico 2025).
12Open Access Music Da aspaces – Open Music Obse a o y p esen ed on LineCheck 2025 (Mikš and An al
2025)
13We a e planning o gi e eedback o he (Pa anen e al. 2025) on 19 No embe , and we asked he
au ho s o he epo o commen on ou G een Pape , oo.
8
Glossa y
Music e ms
audio eco ding: ixa ion o sounds (ISO 2019a)
c ea o : in he con ex o his policy pape , we use he b oad e m o he a ange ,
au ho ,compose ,ly icis ; o indi idual de ini ions see ISWC s anda d (ISO 2022)
DSP o digi al s eaming pla o m: Digi al se ice p o ide s (DSPs), o Digi al
S eaming Pla o ms a e companies o o ganisa ions ha p o ide access o se ices online.
DSPs can p o ide access o music downloads, like Apple’s iTunes S o e, o access o
s eaming music like Spo i y, o e en p o ide sa elli e-deli e ed con en such as Si iusXM
in he USA.
exp ession: in ellec ual o a is ic ealisa ion o one and only one wo k
No e: may ake he o m o a no a ion , sound, image, objec , mo emen o ex (ISO
2017b)
mani es a ion: physical embodimen o an exp ession (ISO 2017b)
mo emen : A p incipal di ision o a musical wo k. (ISO 2022)
music ideo eco ding: ixa ion o sounds synch onized wi h pic u es o mo ing pic u es
whe e (a) he ixed sounds a e wholly o subs an ially a musical pe o mance o (b) he
eco ding is in ended o iewing in associa ion wi h a eco ding o a musical pe o mance.
This de ini ion includes music ideos and conce eco dings, oge he wi h music- ela ed
in e iews and documen a ies, bu does no ex end o gene a! audio isual ma e ial, e en
i i includes music.(ISO 2019a)
musical wo k: composed o a combina ion o sounds, wi h o wi hou accompanying ex
(ISO 2022)
o iginal i le: A i le gi en o he wo k by i s c ea o (s) shown in i s o iginal language.
(ISO 2022)
o mal i le: A s anda dized i le in which he elemen s a e a anged in a p e-
de e mined o de , such as i les c ea ed o classical wo ks. (ISO 2022)
igh s managemen (o ganisa ions): he unc ion o managing he igh s on behal o
igh s owne s. I can be companies whose sole pu pose is o ensu e ha con en ha has
been licensed has deli e ed oyal ies ha a e iden i ied and accoun ed o . The ole can
be aken by collec i e managemen o ganisa ions o by p i a e companies on behal o
songw i e s, compose s, pe o me s, music publishe s, o eco d labels.
9
wi hin he global supply chain and o de elop ade di ec o ies and simila se ices o he
specialized ma ke o music publica ions.
ISCC: The In e na ional S anda d Con en Code (ISCC) is an iden i ie o nume ous ypes
o digi al asse s.
DOI: The Digi al Objec Iden i ie is a s anda dised unique numbe gi en o many (bu no
all) a icles, pape s and books, by some publishe s, o iden i y a pa icula publica ion.
ORCID: he Open Resea che and Con ibu o ID is a unique, pe sis en iden i ie ee o
cha ge o esea che s.
URI: A Uni o m Resou ce Iden i ie (URI) is a s ing o cha ac e s used o iden i y a
esou ce on he in e ne . This esou ce can be ei he abs ac o physical, such as a websi e,
an email add ess, o a ile. URIs a e essen ial o enabling in e ac ions wi h esou ces o e
a ne wo k using speci ic p o ocols.
DDI: The Da a Documen a ion Ini ia i e is o igina ing o he wo ld o social sciences
da a a chi es and mo e and mo e in use in s a is ical o ganisa ions o he documen a ion
o mic oda a.
Wikibase: Wikibase is a so wa e sys em ha help he collabo a i e managemen o knowl-
edge in a cen al eposi o y. I was o iginally de eloped o he managemen o Wikida a,
bu i is a ailable now o he c ea ion o p i a e, o public-p i a e pa ne ship knowledge
g aphs. I is de eloped by Wikimedia Deu schland.
SDMX: S a is ical Da a and Me ada a eXchange (SDMX), is an in e na ional ini ia i e ha
aims a s anda dising and mode nising (“indus ialising”) he mechanisms and p ocesses
o he exchange o s a is ical da a and me ada a among in e na ional o ganisa ions and
hei membe coun ies.
CIDOC-CRM: The concep ual model o CIDOC, he s anda d concep ualisa ion o collec ion
managemen sys ems in he i age o ganisa ions.
RiC:Reco ds in Con ex is a new concep ual model ha eplaces he ou mos impo an
in e na ional a chi ing s anda ds.
DCTERMS o DCMI: he Dublin Co e Me ada a Te ms is a ocabula y o me ada a e ms
de eloped and main ained by he Dublin Co e Me ada a Ini ia i e (DCMI). These e ms
a e used o desc ibe a ious aspec s o digi al esou ces, such as web pages, documen s, and
o he online con en . They p o ide a s anda dized way o assign me ada a o esou ces,
making hem easie o disco e , manage, and exchange.
RDFS: he Resou ce Desc ip ion F amewo k Schema is an ex ension o he Resou ce Desc ip-
ion F amewo k (RDF) ha p o ides a ocabula y o desc ibing classes and p ope ies o
esou ces wi hin an RDF g aph.
EDM: he Eu opeana Da a Model is a amewo k o collec ing, connec ing, and en iching
cul u al he i age me ada a. I ’s designed o acili a e he sha ing and euse o cul u al
he i age in o ma ion by p o iding a s anda dized way o ep esen and link da a.
16

PROV-O: he P o enance on ology is a o mal on ology de eloped by W3C o ep esen and
in e change p o enance in o ma ion.
MARC: MAchine-Readable Ca aloging, is a s anda d digi al o ma used by lib a ies o
ep esen and exchange bibliog aphic in o ma ion.
DCAT: an RDF ocabula y designed o acili a e in e ope abili y be ween da a ca alogues
published on he Web.
O ganisa ions
AEPO-ARTIS: O ganisa ion ep esen ing Eu opean a is s-pe o me s. Reg oups mos o
he Eu opean CMO ep esen ing pe o me s.
ALOADED: is a company which dis ibu es and exploi s eco dings.
CISAC: The In e na ional Con ede a ion o Socie ies o Au ho s and Compose s is an in e -
na ional non-go e nmen al, no - o -p o i o ganisa ion ha aims o p o ec he igh s and
p omo e he in e es s o c ea o s wo ldwide.
CNM ( o me CNV): he Cen e Na ional de la Musique is a public o ganisa ion managing
a ax on conce icke s
EMO: The Eu opean Music Obse a o y (EMO) is en isioned as a hub o collec ing and
analysing da a on he music sec o ac oss Eu ope. I s p ima y aim is o add ess he cu en
gaps and inconsis encies in music da a collec ion, which ha e been a signi ican challenge
o he sec o .
Eu opeana: a digi al pla o m p o ided by he Eu opean Union ha agg ega es digi ized
cul u al he i age om ins i u ions ac oss Eu ope.
GESAC: The Eu opean G ouping o Socie ies o Au ho s and Compose s (GESAC) com-
p ises o 32 Eu opean au ho s’ socie ies in music, audio isual, isual a s, li e a u e and
d ama.
IAML: In e na ional Associa ion o Music Lib a ies, A chi es and Documen a ion Cen es
IAMIC: In e na ional Associa ion o Music Cen es, an in e na ional ne wo k o o ganisa-
ions ha collec i ely and collabo a i ely p o ides in o ma ion and p omo es he music o
hei coun ies o egions.
ICMP: he global ade body ep esen ing he music publishing indus y wo ldwide.
SCAPR: In e na ional associa ion o he de elopmen o he p ac ical coope a ion be ween
pe o me s’ collec i e managemen o ganisa ions (CMOs)
SOZA: SOZA (Slo enský och anný z äz au o ský p e p á a k hudobným dielam, Slo ak
Pe o ming and Mechanical Righ s Socie y) is a legal en i y, non-p o i ci ic associa ion o
au ho s and publishe s o musical wo ks, associa ion o na u al pe sons and legal en i ies.
17
Hudobné Cen um: Music Cen e Slo akia is a music o ganisa ion wi h a mission o p o-
mo e Slo ak con empo aly music.
O he abb e ia ions
CEEMID: he Cen al Eu opean Music Indus y Da abases is a mul i-coun y p ojec ha
was a p edecesso o Rep ex’s Digi al Music Obse a o y
DSP: Digi al se ice p o ide s (DSPs), o Digi al S eaming Pla o ms a e companies o
o ganisa ions ha p o ide access o se ices online.
EIF: The Eu opean In e ope abili y F amewo k (EIF) is a se o ecommenda ions and
guidelines ha aims o acili a e communica ion and collabo a ion be ween public ad-
minis a ions, businesses, and ci izens wi hin he Eu opean Union and ac oss na ional
bo de s.
ECCCH: The Eu opean Collabo a i e Cloud o Cul u al He i age is a Eu opean Union
ini ia i e o a digi al in as uc u e ha will connec cul u al he i age ins i u ions and
p o essionals ac oss he EU.
EOSC: The Eu opean Open Science Cloud (EOSC) aims o c ea e a us ed, open, and
mul idisciplina y en i onmen o esea che s and inno a o s in Eu ope.
PPP: A Public-P i a e Pa ne ship (PPP) is a collabo a i e a angemen be ween go e n-
men en i ies and p i a e sec o companies aimed a inancing, designing, implemen ing,
and ope a ing p ojec s o se ices adi ionally p o ided by he public sec o .
RDM: Resea ch Da a Managemen e e s o he sui e o p ac ices, policies, and p ocesses
used o handle da a h oughou he li ecycle o a esea ch p ojec .
W3C: The Wo ld Wide Web Conso ium (W3C) is an in e na ional communi y ha de elops
s anda ds o he Wo ld Wide Web. Thei mission is o lead he Web o i s ull po en ial by
c ea ing echnical speci ica ions and guidelines ha a e designed o be open and oyal y-
ee. These s anda ds include HTML, CSS, and o he web echnologies, which ensu e ha
web con en is accessible ac oss di e en b owse s and de ices.
Ou glossa y is ha monised wi h ele an music-sec o speci ic s anda ds and wi h he
• ISO In o ma ion echnology Vocabula y (ISO 2023b); Cloud compu ing — Taxonomy
based da a handling o cloud se ices (ISO 2020); Cloud compu ing — In e ope abil-
i y and po abili y (ISO 2017a); Me ada a egis ies (MDR) — 1. F amewo k (ISO
2023a) s anda ds and he In o ma ion and documen a ion — Founda ion and ocab-
ula y (ISO 2017b) s anda d.
• ISO In o ma ion echnology A i icial in elligence — Concep s and e minology
(ISO/IEC 2022) and A i icial in elligence — Managemen sys em and (ISO/IEC
2023) s anda d’s ocabula y.
18
1 Policy con ex and p oblem map
The Eu opean music ecosys em has unde gone dis up i e ans o ma ions in ecen decades.
In he 2010s, he a i al o agen ic AI in s eaming pla o ms adically econ igu ed dis ibu-
ion and consump ion. These sys ems cen alised global sales, expanding he comme cially
a ailable epe oi e in a ypical EU coun y om oughly 100,000 i les o o e 100 million
i les compe ing o a en ion. A he same ime, he a e age ansac ion alue collapsed
om a ound €18 (in cu en p ices) o less han €0.005. This shock hollowed ou much o
he adi ional in as uc u e — eco d s o es, adios, and music ele ision — and shi ed
alue cap u e owa d da a-d i en pla o ms able o con ol access h ough ecommende
algo i hms.
In he 2020s, he ise o gene a i e AI u he exace ba es his si ua ion. La ge-scale models
can mass-p oduce new composi ions and eco dings, o en imi a ing o plagia ising pa e ns
o human c ea o s. This in la es supply, unde mines he posi ion o p o essional au ho s
and pe o me s, and agg a a es exis ing p oblems o emune a ion and disco e abili y.1
EU-le el s udies and policy amewo ks ha e ecognised hese dynamics and inc easingly
ame hem as sys emic challenges. The Feasibili y S udy o he Es ablishmen o a Eu o-
pean Music Obse a o y diagnosed he agmen ed, sca ce, and poo ly ha monised na u e
o music da a collec ion ac oss Membe S a es, calling i he undamen al eason o an
EU-le el obse a o y. The Music Ecosys em 2025 s udy e ames he sec o as an in e con-
nec ed ecosys em, whe e pla o misa ion, ma ke consolida ion, and eme ging echnologies
like AI in e ac wi h b oade socie al challenges such as p eca i y, gende inequali y, and
sus ainabili y. The Eu opean Pa liamen , in i s Resolu ion on cul u al di e si y and he
condi ions o au ho s in he Eu opean music s eaming ma ke , echoed hese conce ns wi h
explici calls o e o m.2
1Music Ecosys em 2025: S udy on he Music Ecosys em (Music Mo es Eu ope 2024); i ames he sec o
as an adap i e, ne wo ked ecosys em, highligh s AI’s abili y o dis up on pp. 6–7, and men ions i
as an oppo uni y pa icula ly on p. 23. Feasibili y S udy o he Es ablishmen o a Eu opean Music
Obse a o y (Commission e al. 2020); s esses he agmen ed, sca ce, and poo ly ha monised na u e
o music da a (pp. 9–10), he need o coope a ion wi h igh s o ganisa ions, s a is ical agencies, and
indus y s akeholde s (p. 61), and in oduces CEEMID as a bes p ac ice (pp. 147–148). CEEMID
eme ged om Budapes , B a isla a, and Zag eb as an ea ly e o o add ess da a po e y in Eas e n
EU Membe S a es.
2Eu opean Pa liamen Resolu ion on cul u al di e si y and he condi ions o au ho s in he Eu opean
music s eaming ma ke (Eu opean Pa liamen 2024); i ecognises s eaming as he dominan global
e enue sou ce while lea ing many au ho s wi h e y low income ( eci als F–H), s esses accu a e
me ada a alloca ion a he ime o c ea ion using iden i ie s ISWC, ISRC, ISNI, IPI, and IPN ( eci al
R, and 9.), highligh s he lack o quali y da a o p ope ly iden i y au ho s, pe o me s, and igh s
holde s ( eci al L), and wa ns ha AI-gene a ed acks a e looding s eaming pla o ms, agg a a ing
disco e abili y and emune a ion imbalances ( eci al O).
19
Ou policy b ie posi ions i sel wi hin his landscape. I aims o suppo and ex end he
Music Mo es Eu ope amewo k by highligh ing six c ucial dimensions:
1. P ac ical solu ions, g ounded in dialogue be ween esea ch and indus y, and in-
spi ed by conc e e expe iences wi h open, ede a ed da a-sha ing app oaches.
2. Po en ial pi alls whe e well-meaning ini ia i es may clash wi h legacy sys ems,
exis ing business p ac ices, o con adic ions in legisla ion.
3. Legal and ope a ional con lic s, such as he ension be ween GDPR’s da a p o-
ec ion egime and he Be ne Con en ion’s equi emen o au ho a ibu ion.
4. Coope a ion and wo k low sha ing, ecognising ha no single ac o can bea
he ull bu den o me ada a documen a ion.
5. Technology, including au oma ion, en i y ecogni ion, econcilia ion, and pe sis en
iden i ie s.
6. AI adap a ion and coope a i e in as uc u es, since mos s akeholde s canno
a ac o e ain sca ce AI expe ise.
By o eg ounding hese issues, he b ie complemen s he calls o he Music Ecosys em
2025 s udy and he Eu opean Music Obse a o y easibili y s udy, while emaining a en i e
o he p ac ical challenges o implemen a ion ac oss Eu ope’s di e se music and cul u al
landscapes.
1.1 Th ee s uc u al p essu es
Th ee s uc u al p essu es ame oday’s me ada a challenges:
1. Ex eme efficiency p essu e. Music is now mone ised in mic o- ansac ions wo h
a ac ion o a cen . Each me ada a mis ake means los oyal ies, while big- ech pla -
o ms enjoy economies o scale ha sel - eleasing a is s, small labels, and na ional
CMOs canno ma ch.
2. AI-d i en dis up ion. Agen ic AI in s eaming pla o ms has al eady displaced
much o he adi ional e ail and p omo ion in as uc u e. Gene a i e AI isks
looding pla o ms wi h de i a i e wo ks and u he des abilising disco e abili y
and e enues. Ye AI ools could also suppo documen a ion and econcilia ion —
i go e nance amewo ks can enable hem.
3. Go e nance and incen i e con lic s. Iden i ie s such as ISWC, ISRC, ISNI,
and IPN a e essen ial o a ibu ion and oyal y dis ibu ion, bu a e main ained
unde cos ly, la gely p i a e egimes. Public policy inc easingly demands mo e open
me ada a, bu sus aining in es men in hese egis e s emains a challenge.
These p essu es mean ha imp o ing me ada a is no only a ma e o echnical in e -
ope abili y. I is also a ques ion o economic sus ainabili y, legal cohe ence, and cul u al
policy.
20
1.2 Na ional and Eu opean pilo s as ancho s
F om he ou se , we d aw on conc e e pilo s ha illus a e bo h he p oblems and possible
solu ions. Two o hem — he Slo ak Comp ehensi e Music Da abase (SKCMDb)
and Unlabel — will ecu h oughou his pape as e e ence poin s. Toge he , hey
ancho he h ee hema ic chap e s: cu a ion (Chap e 2), obse a o y (Chap e 3),
and AI (Chap e 4).
1.2.1 The Slo ak Comp ehensi e Music Da abase (SKCMDb)
SKCMDb is ou na ional pilo o ede a ed me ada a go e nance. I links oge he da a
om collec i e managemen (SOZA), na ional and ci y lib a ies, and a chi es, while en-
su ing ha wo ks can also be disco e ed in he digi al en i onmen s whe e people ac ually
lis en: Spo i y, YouTube, Apple Classical, and o he s. A u he laye econciles his
me ada a wi h he Slo ak S a is ical Office ia a Sa elli e Business Regis e , so ha
cul u al p oduc ion is isible in official economic da a.
The SKCMDb is ancho ed in he Memo andum o Unde s anding signed be ween col-
lec i e managemen o ganisa ions (SOZA, SLOVGRAM), cul u al ins i u ions (Hudobné
cen um, Slo ak Na ional Lib a y, Hudobný ond), and Rep ex.
This MoU o malises a ede a ed go e nance model whe e:
•A ibu ion (names o au ho s, pe o me s, compose s) is p ese ed as legally
manda o y unde copy igh law.
•P i acy is sa egua ded by laye ed access: public da a (names, wo ks, iden i ie s)
ci cula e b oadly, while sensi i e da a (e.g., add esses, bi h da es) emain es ic ed.
•In e ope abili y is achie ed by aligning wi h VIAF, ISNI, ISWC, ISRC, and Eu o-
peana.
As such, he Memo andum p o ides he legal and ins i u ional ounda ion o SKCMDb,
u ning a echnical pilo in o a na ional da aspace aligned wi h he EU Da a S a egy.
The SKCMDb in ac ion
The cha illus a es he biog aphy and wo ks o Slo ak compose I is Szeghy as an
example:
21

Figu e 1.1: A slide aken om: SKCMDb: In e ope abili y o Music Lib a ies and A chi es
wi h Public and P i a e Music Se ices (p esen a ion a he IAML 2025 con-
e ence in Salzbu g) <h ps://zenodo.o g/ eco ds/16634558>
•Le side: econcilia ion o he wo ks ac oss SOZA, he Slo ak Na ional Lib a y,
he B a isla a Ci y Lib a y, and a chi es.
•Righ side: linking o lis ening pla o ms (Spo i y, YouTube, Apple Classical).
•Bo om: econcilia ion wi h he Slo ak S a is ical Office ia he Sa elli e Business
Regis e .
SKCMDb hus ac s as a b idge be ween cul u al memo y ins i u ions, igh s managemen ,
digi al dis ibu ion, and public policy.
SKCMDb p o ides a p agma ic esponse o agmen a ion and duplica ion. I ancho s he
discussion o p e en i e me ada a s a egies in Chap e 2.
This challenge is no unique o Slo akia. A ecen Ho izon Eu ope policy b ie has high-
ligh ed how inadequa e me ada a in as uc u es and agmen ed Eu opean ini-
ia i es isk lea ing he ield open o dominance by ex a-Eu opean playe s ( o example,
he US Mechanical Licensing Collec i e).3
3See Policy B ie 1: Music Me ada a Mains eaming and EU Law (Sen leben e al. 2024) (Deli e able
D5.6, OpenMusE p ojec ). Tha b ie emphasises ha wi hou a Eu opean me ada a in as uc u e,
EU epe oi es may emain unde exploi ed and cul u ally in isible, while o eign pla o ms consolida e
hegemony. The p esen G een Pape ex ends on his line o a gumen by ocusing on li ecycle-based
in e ope abili y and ede a ed obse a o ies as sa egua ds o Eu opean so e eign y.The Policy B ie
1 Annex e e ences he Slo ak Lis en Local / SKCMDb p ojec as a na ional pilo , unde lining i s
ele ance o EU-le el policy design. The G een Pape complemen s his by si ua ing he MoU as a
eplicable go e nance amewo k o ede a ed me ada a spaces.
22
1.2.2 Unlabel
I SKCMDb ocuses on building p e en i e in as uc u es, Unlabel demons a es how
o epai he pas . I is a collabo a i e pipeline connec ing a chi es, lib a ies, collec i e
igh s o ganisa ions, and dis ibu o s o b ing unde -documen ed epe oi es in o he global
digi al supply chain.
A s iking example is he case o Hilda G i a, a bilingual Li onian–Es onian a is ac-
i e in he in e wa Finno-Ug ic e i al. He eco dings we e edisco e ed in he La ian
A chi es o Folklo e bu lacked he me ada a equi ed o ci cula ion. Th ough Unlabel,
we ansla ed and en iched he eco ds, econciled hem wi h in e na ional au ho i ies, and
ex ended hem wi h DDEX ca alogue ans e me ada a, enabling elease ia Spo i y,
YouTube, and Apple Music.
ĹNo e
In obox: Unlabel and Hilda G i a
• Me ada a epai began wi h a chi al eco ds in he La ian A chi es o Folklo e.
• Reco ds we e ansla ed, en iched, and econciled wi h Wikida a, MusicB ainz,
and VIAF.
• DDEX-complian ca alogue ans e me ada a enabled digi al dis ibu ion.
• The en iched ca alogue allowed Hilda G i a’s eco dings o be eleased and
disco e ed globally.
Unlabel demons a es how public he i age ins i u ions and p i a e dis ibu o s can coope -
a e h ough sha ed s anda ds. I ancho s bo h he cu a i e AI app oaches in Chap e 4
and he obse a o y pe spec i e in Chap e 3.
1.3 Ques o efficiency
Technological p og ess, digi isa ion, au oma ion, and now AI ha e ans o med he music
indus y mo e d ama ically han mos sec o s. A e he collapse o he CD e a unde pee -
o-pee pi acy, a newly con igu ed eco ding indus y eme ged a ound global pla o ms.
T adi ional e ail and wholesale jobs la gely disappea ed, eplaced by s eaming pla o ms
such as YouTube, Apple Music, and Spo i y.
This shi coincided wi h a s uc u al de alua ion o music. The licensed s eaming
model ne e eco e ed he eal e enues o he p e-collapse eco ding ma ke , and om
his diminished base, pla o ms ake a signi ican sha e. Whe e a CD sale once b ough
a ound €10–18 in oday’s e ms, he uni o accoun in s eaming is a ac ion o a cen —
ypically $0.003–0.005 pe play.
To eplace he economic weigh o a single album sale, a igh sholde mus now p ocess and
accoun o oughly 4,000 success ul s eams. This is no me ely an economic shi , bu an
23
adminis a i e e olu ion. The documen a ion efficiency needed o handle millions o
mic o- ansac ions p o i ably is a highe han in he p e-s eaming e a.
S eaming pla o ms a e genuine big-da a companies. Alphabe ’s YouTube, Apple, and
Spo i y ope a e a a scale whe e billions o ansac ions and hund eds o millions o asse s
can be managed by au onomous agen s and ecommende engines. Bu he ypical igh -
sholde — a sel - eleasing a is , an independen label, o e en a na ional collec i e igh s
agency — wo ks a a scale whe e each me ada a mis ake means los oyal ies, and whe e
IT o documen a ion specialis s a e o en absen al oge he . This asymme y is so s a k
ha e en majo CMOs ely on sha ed in as uc u es like he digi al se ices o “Min ” o
manage epe oi e a scale.
Music, hen, is now sold in ex emely low- alue ansac ions media ed by au-
onomous agen s. This eali y en o ces a e y s ong p essu e on he en i e ecosys em
o imp o e da a in e ope abili y and me ada a quali y.
By con as , in mos indus ies adminis a i e o e head is modes :
• Re ail/dis ibu ion: ~2–5% o ne sales
• Manu ac u ing: ~3–7%
• P o essional se ices: 10–15% (because adminis a ion blu s in o he p oduc )
• OECD/EU c oss-indus y a e ages: 3–8% o u no e
In “no mal” indus ies, hen, €50 o adminis a i e cos is jus i ied on €1000 o e enue.
By compa ison, in he eco ded music indus y, achie ing ha same 5% efficiency equi es
deli e ing aul lessly some 200,000 s eaming ansac ions. This is a e y all o de o
a sec o domina ed by mic o-en e p ises and small independen s wi hou dedica ed IT o
me ada a eams.
The p essu e o efficiency is no only p esen on he p oduc ion side o he music busi-
ness. In he non-p o i sec o , digi isa ion has p o oundly ans o med he wo k lows o
a chi es, lib a ies, and he i age ins i u ions as well. S eaming has educed demand o
physical collec ions, o cing lib a ies o e ame hei ole a ound digi isa ion, knowledge
o ganisa ion, and communi y unc ions a he han lending CDs o sco es. New spaces like
c ea i e s udios and digi al eposi o ies a e expec ed, bu unding is limi ed, so efficiency is
c i ical. A he same ime, he as amoun o bo n-digi al asse s — and now he endless
ou pu o gene a i e AI sys ems — c ea es a puzzle o a chi es ha emains unsol ed
oday.4
Me ada a as p o enance
In oday’s music ecosys em, almos e e y asse is bo n digi al. A mode n compose ’s sco e
is p oduced in no a ion so wa e; a pe o me ’s eco ding o igina es as a digi al ile; e en
4See o example he Ka ona Józse Lib a y’s adap i e s a egies (Vi ág 2024). A chi es, on he o he
hand, ace a p oblem ha ins ead o ecei ing eco ds on pape , hey a e becoming gigan ic da a silos
in he age o bo n-digi al documen s. They a e being ans o med in o da a h ough digi isa ion and
bo n-digi al eco ds, ace olumes oo la ge o manual p ocessing. This p essu es adi ional a chi al
concep s such as p o enance, o iginal o de , ixi y, and au hen ici y (Cola izza e al. 2022).
24
p in ing, dis ibu ion, and p omo ion lea e hei own digi al aces. F om he e y s a ,
each musical wo k and each eco ding comes wi h a dense digi al inge p in .
As hese wo ks mo e h ough hei li ecycle — composi ion, egis a ion, pe o mance,
eco ding, dis ibu ion, p ese a ion — hey accumula e p o enance s a emen s:“X
composed his,” “Y egis e ed ha ,” “Z a chi ed his ile.” Taken oge he , hese aces
o m a chain o knowledge abou he his o y o he wo k. Unlike in ea lie cen u ies, his
his o y is now almos con inuously cap u ed, hough o en agmen ed o messy — he
“shadows” ha Ka abinos has desc ibed.
Figu e 1.2: The PROV model helps us desc ibe he li ecycle o music: who did wha , when,
and wi h wha . A compose , pe o me , o so wa e ool (agen ) engages in
an ac i i y such as composing o eco ding, which esul s in a musical wo k
o a sound eco ding (en i y). Cap u ing hese links o e ime makes p o e-
nance anspa en , ensu es co ec a ibu ion, and suppo s us wo hy da a
exchange ac oss he music sec o . Reuse: DOI: 10.6084/m9. igsha e.30073210
Me ada a is “da a abou da a.” Bu in p ac ice, wha coun s as da a o me ada a is ela i e:
a du a ion may be desc ip i e o one ac o , iden i ying o ano he , and algo i hmic inpu
o a hi d. This dis ibu ed eco d o p o enance esembles a chain o s a emen s, some
e i iable, some con adic o y, some los in he shadows. The challenge is no o build a
single immu able blockchain, bu o make he dis ibu ed eco d eliable, eusable, and
in e ope able.
As shown in Sec ion 1.2, pilo s like SKCMDb and Unlabel p o ide wo complemen a y
esponses: p e en i e go e nance o me ada a a c ea ion (Chap e 2), and cu a i e epai
o legacy epe oi es (Chap e 4; Chap e 3).
25
i s clien s elease. None o hese logics a e w ong, bu hey a e di e en . This is why
a emp s o o ce e e y hing in o one uni e sal collec ion model ha e ailed.
In abs ac e ms, he e is no single “concep ualisa ion” o he wo ld ha can i a igh s
managemen o ganisa ion, a lib a y, and a music a chi e equally well. On a e y abs ac
le el, he same lesson was d awn in ma hema ics and philosophy: Gödel showed ha no
o mal sys em can cap u e all u hs wi hin i sel , and Quine a gued ha e e ence is
always ela i e o a concep ual scheme. In compu e and in o ma ion science, we know
his as he impossibili y o a uni e sal on ology ha could se e all da abases.3These
limi s a e well unde s ood, bu ecognising hem is no an excuse o inac ion. I means we
should wo k p agma ically: accep ha mul iple logics exis , and ocus on making hem
in e ope able whe e possible.
ĹWhy collec ions di e in da abases
•Lib a ies collec unde legal deposi ules: e e y book o sco e published in a
coun y mus be included, ega dless o popula i y.
•A chi es ollow p o enance: hey keep wha an o ganisa ion o indi idual
p oduced, no necessa ily wha is “impo an .”
•Collec i e managemen o ganisa ions (CMOs) mus egis e only wha
hei membe s submi — he collec ion e lec s con ac s and epe oi e, no
cul u al comple eness.
•Dis ibu o s ake wha hei clien s elease: he “collec ion” is shaped by
ma ke demand and con ac s.
Each o hese logics is alid, bu none can be educed o he o he s. This is why a
single “g and on ology” o all collec ions is no achie able. The p agma ic ask is o
connec hem h ough ligh weigh , modula pa e ns ha allow da a o low ac oss
bounda ies while espec ing ins i u ional di e ences.
2.1.4 Legacy me ada a
The Eu opean Pa liamen has emphasised ha accu a e and s anda dised me ada a is
essen ial o ensu ing ai emune a ion and p ope a ibu ion in he music s eaming
3As in o ma ion science shows, a collec ion is no a ma hema ical se bu a socially and ins i u ionally
cons uc ed g ouping, shaped by cu a o ial o o ganisa ional logics. A emp s o c ea e one “giga-
on ology” o music me ada a ha e consis en ly ailed, because he sec o is oo he e ogeneous —
collec i e managemen o ganisa ions, lib a ies, a chi es, pla o ms, and dis ibu o s ope a e unde
di e en s anda ds and go e nance models. A a mo e philosophical le el, Quine eminds us ha any
on ology is ela i e o i s concep ual scheme, and he e is no absolu e desc ip ion o he wo ld ha can
se e all pu poses equally ((Quine 1968)). Gödel’s incomple eness esul s, likewise, show he inhe en
limi s o o mal sys ems, unde sco ing why compu e science and da abase heo y ecognise ha no
single uni e sal on ology can cap u e all possible cases.
32

ma ke . I calls o iden i ie s such as ISWC, ISRC, ISNI, IPI, and IPN o be alloca ed
a he momen o c ea ion, and wa ns ha he lood o AI-gene a ed acks will wo sen
disco e abili y and e enue imbalances i me ada a emains incomple e o inconsis en .4
In p ac ice, achie ing his goal has p o en e y difficul . The egis e s ha unde pin
music me ada a a e p i a ely go e ned, equi e con inuous in es men , and canno simply
be ebuil om sc a ch. Hund eds o millions o asse s a e al eady ci cula ing, and billions
o ansac ions a e handled annually on he basis o his legacy in as uc u e. E en he
e m me ada a is ambiguous: in lib a ies and IT i means desc ip i e in o ma ion ( i le,
gen e, p o enance), bu in he music indus y i usually e e s na owly o adminis a i e
iden i ie s ha d i e oyal y dis ibu ion. This gap in e minology adds o con usion and
misplaced expec a ions.
ĹFo wa d-looking iden i ie pilo s: PRS Nexus and Teos o ISNI
Two ecen ini ia i es show how he indus y is mo ing owa ds be e iden i ie co -
e age a sou ce:
•PRS o Music – Nexus. A new po al linking wo ks (ISWC) and eco dings
(ISRC) a he momen o elease. I al eady co e s nea ly 3 million wo ks and
o e s APIs o igh s-holde s and DSPs (PRS o Music 2023; Wo ld In ellec ual
P ope y O ganiza ion (WIPO) 2023). By embedding ISWC alloca ion in o
dis ibu ion wo k lows, Nexus aims o accele a e oyal y paymen s and educe
econcilia ion delays ha o en las mon hs o yea s.
•Teos o – ISNI o au ho s. The Finnish CMO Teos o now assigns ISNIs o
i s membe s, gi ing au ho s and compose s pe sis en iden i ie s ha in e link
wi h VIAF, ORCID, and Wikida a (Teos o 2024). This connec s music igh s
da a wi h lib a y and esea ch in as uc u es and s eng hens in e na ional
in e ope abili y.
These p ojec s simpli y me ada a a he poin o c ea ion and elease, aligning wi h
pe sis en iden i ie s a egies in he esea ch sec o (C uz and Ta um 2021). Bu hey
mainly add ess u u e epe oi e. The much la ge challenge lies in he hund eds o
millions o legacy asse s al eady ci cula ing wi hou comple e iden i ie links — a
p oblem ha equi es complemen a y solu ions, discussed la e in his chap e .
Toge he , ISRC ( eco dings), ISWC (wo ks), and ISMN (p in ed music) o m he backbone
o music iden i ica ion. In heo y hey p o ide global co e age, bu in p ac ice hey emain
agmen ed: many eco dings ne e ecei e iden i ie s, links be ween iden i ie s a e o en
missing, and up ake is une en ac oss egis ies. This agili y makes he Eu opean Pa lia-
men ’s ambi ions difficul o ealise wi hou new laye s o in e ope abili y, obse abili y,
and sha ed esponsibili y. The shee g ow h in epe oi e makes his gap impossible o
close wi h manual wo k lows: by 2024, mo e music was eleased in a single day han in
4Eu opean Pa liamen esolu ion o 17 Janua y 2024 on cul u al di e si y and he condi ions o au ho s
in he Eu opean music s eaming ma ke , eci al 32 (Eu opean Pa liamen 2024).
33
he en i e yea o 1989 (Abing 2024)5. This scale o legacy unde -documen a ion canno
ealis ically be esol ed wi h manual wo k lows alone — i poin s di ec ly o he need o
cu a i e AI app oaches, which we e u n o in Sec ion 4.2.
Al hough me ada a epai is indispensabl, me ada a is ne e ne u al. Wi hou co ec ed
iden i ie s, econciled names, and en iched anno a ions, wo ks emain in isible in oyal y
and disco e y sys ems. Howe e , jus as he i age da a spaces show how epai ing me ada a
can es o e isibili y while also ein o cing ins i u ional logics, in music ecosys ems he
same epai p ac ices can unexpec edly inc ease exposu e o gene a i e AI. By making
wo ks mo e legible o agen ic applica ions, en iched me ada a imp o es a ibu ion bu
also sha pens he abili y o AI sys ems o imi a e and subs i u e. This pa adox is mos
acu e o small-scale epe oi es and independen a is s, whose economic posi ion mi o s
he epis emic ulne abili y o mino i y he i age collec ions.
ĹCase S udy: Me ada a Repai — He i age and Repe oi e
Repai ing he i age me ada a
- In he Finno-Ug ic Da a Sha ing Space we wo ked wi h he La ian A chi e o Folk-
lo e and egional museums o epai and en ich me ada a a ound Li onian, La ian,
and Hunga ian olk music.
- In Hunga y, oge he wi h he House o Music, we began epai ing he los docu-
men a ion o eco dings supp essed unde Communis censo ship. He e, epai is no
only a ma e o accu acy bu also o es i u ion: wi hou co ec ed me ada a, hese
wo ks emain locked behind ou da ed copy igh classi ica ions long a e he s a e
label monopoly has ended.
- O iginal eco ds in bo h con ex s we e shallow, monolingual, and shaped by ins i u-
ional o censo ed axonomies. By econciling names, places, languages, and cul u al
e ms, we enabled wo ks o be edisco e ed ac oss Wikida a and Wikipedia.
- These a e ex eme cases o damaged me ada a ( h ough censo ship, So ie - ype copy-
igh , o mino i y language non-s anda disa ion). Ye simila p oblems a ec he long
ail o Eu opean music he i age and oday’s independen o sel - eleasing a is s.
- As ou o hcoming academic pape shows, his is no a neu al “clean-up”: choices
abou ocabula ies and iden i ie s de e mine wha communi ies can see o hemsel es.
Repai he e means cul u al epai — es o ing epis emic isibili y o communi ies,
legal hei s, and cul u al s ewa ds.
Repai ing epe oi e me ada a
- Th ough he Unlabel p o o ype, we apply simila p ac ices o con empo a y sel -
5The In e na ional S anda d Reco ding Code (ISRC) was in oduced in 1986 as a 12-cha ac e iden i-
ie o eco dings (ISO 3901) and is managed ope a ionally by IFPI (ISO 2019a; In e na ional ISRC
Regis a ion Au ho i y 2021). Pe sis en p oblems include e oac i e assignmen , inconsis en embed-
ding, and weak in e ope abili y wi h ISWC (Paskin 2006, p4). The In e na ional S anda d Musical
Wo k Code (ISWC) iden i ies composi ions and ly ics (ISO 15707), managed by CISAC h ough he
ISWC Agency (ISO 2022). Challenges include duplica e codes, misma ches wi h ISRC, and une en
adop ion by CMOs (Paskin 2006, p7). The In e na ional S anda d Music Numbe (ISMN, ISO 10957)
iden i ies p in ed music publica ions (ISO 2021). I p o ides a b idge be ween bibliog aphic and igh s-
managemen p ac ices, bu emains unde used in digi al wo k lows.
34
eleased music: en iching wo ks wi h ISRC/ISWC codes, mul ilingual anno a ions,
and lib a y-s anda d me ada a.
- This makes p e iously “in isible” acks legible o s eaming pla o ms and collec ion
socie ies, imp o ing disco e abili y and oyal y lows.
- Again, epai is no neu al: he way iden i ie s and ca ego ies a e assigned shapes
how a is s’ wo ks a e ound, mone ised, o sidelined.
The pa adox
- These cases illus a e ha me ada a is ne e neu al. Repai empowe s a is s
and communi ies, bu i also encodes assump ions and makes wo ks mo e legible o
agen ic applica ions.
- In he i age, ins i u ional schemas may la en local epis emologies; in he ma ke ,
gene a i e AI may exploi en iched me ada a o imi a e and subs i u e — a p oblem
we will discuss in Chap e 4.
- In bo h con ex s, me ada a epai empowe s and exposes — isibili y and
isk a e wo sides o he same p ocess, which makes me ada a go e nance a policy
conce n, no a pu ely echnical one.
Ou app oach
- Ou solu ion is o use decen alised sys ems like Wikida a and Wikibase oge he
wi h s ong on ological pa e ns.
- Hea y-weigh on ologies ake up o a decade o de elop, may in oduce new biases
h ough he non-neu al na u e o me ada a, and by he ime hey a e c ea ed, hey
may no add ess new challenges — o example, p o iding gua d ails agains nega i e
ou comes o agen ic o gene a i e AI.
- As wi h he in as uc u e in Chap e 3, we aim o decen alisa ion al eady a
he me ada a-de ini ion le el. An Open Music Obse a o y will allow me ada a
o be managed h ough lexible, open p ocesses ha c ea e de ini ions and es ablish
equi alences o exis ing s anda ds.
2.1.5 Named-en i y esolu ion, a ibu ion, and p i acy
A ibu ion is no op ional in music: he names o au ho s, pe o me s, and p oduce s
a e s uc u ally necessa y o copy igh , oyal ies, and cul u al eco d-keeping. Ye un-
de GDPR, hese names coun as pe sonal da a, c ea ing a con adic ion a he e y
ounda ions o me ada a cu a ion. Wha is manda o y unde copy igh law becomes a lia-
bili y unde da a p o ec ion law. In p ac ice, p i a e ac o s ace epea ed balancing es s,
inconsis en in e p e a ions, and he isk o complain s e en when a ibu ion is legally
equi ed.
This con adic ion d i es up cos s and discou ages in es men in be e me ada a. Small
publishe s and sel - eleasing a is s al eady ace disp opo iona ely high OPEX (documen-
a ion, bookkeeping) and CAPEX (IT sys ems). Wi hou a o dable, legally secu e ways
o esol e named en i ies, hei wo ks pe o m badly on pla o ms and oyal ies a e los .
Policy communi ies in Eu ope ecognise hese issues. The Big Da a Value Associa-
ion (BDVA) has long a gued ha us amewo ks and go e nance pilla s a e essen ial
35
o da a sha ing, while he Fede a ion Wo king G oup s esses ha ede a ion — no
cen alisa ion — is he only ealis ic model o connec ing Eu ope’s agmen ed da a ecosys-
ems (Big Da a Value Associa ion 2019; BDVA/DAIRO 2023; BDVA/DAIRO Fede a ion
Wo king G oup 2023). These p inciples apply equally in music. Bu gi en he sec o ’s ex-
eme agmen a ion and mic o-en e p ise s uc u e, implemen ing hem he e is especially
difficul .
How hese s uc u al p oblems can be add essed a sys emic le el is he subjec o Sec-
ion 3.1.3, whe e we show how da a sha ing spaces p o ide a way o wa d.
2.2 Policy p oposals
Figu e 2.3: Explana ion
2.2.1 Reducing edundancy
The Eu opean Pa liamen has igh ly highligh ed ha agmen ed and un eliable me ada a
emains a majo obs acle in he music sec o . We ag ee wi h his diagnosis, bu s ess ha
he oo cause lies pa ly in he need o backwa d compa ibili y wi h hund eds o millions
o legacy asse s, and in he cos ly edundancy o oday’s p ac ices: he same in o ma ion
mus be epea edly en e ed in o sepa a e sys ems such as ISNI, ISWC, ISRC, VIAF, o local
au ho i y iles. This duplica ion c ea es e o s, inc eases cos s, and discou ages accu a e
egis a ion.
36
Ou policy solu ion is o suppo edundancy- ee egis a ion by aligning he wo k-
lows o hose who al eady main ain au ho i a i e da a. Ins ead o duplica ing e o s,
egis a ion s eps can be coo dina ed once and eused many imes. We demons a e his
app oach wi h ou Open Music Regis e s pilo : a ede a ed in as uc u e ha in e con-
nec s pe sis en iden i ie s (ISWC, ISRC, ISNI, VIAF) and, whe e ele an , links hem
o business and s a is ical iden i ie s (e.g. OpenCo po a es, NACE, ISCO). This allows
music c ea o s and o ganisa ions o bene i om smoo he wo k lows, while downs eam
use s gain mo e eliable da a o oyal y dis ibu ion, cul u al isibili y, and AI-d i en
disco e y.
The Open Music Regis e s delibe a ely a oid cen alisa ion. Each egis a — collec i e
managemen o ganisa ions, lib a ies, a chi es, o s a is ical offices — e ains owne ship
o i s da a bu con ibu es o a sha ed seman ic amewo k.6By connec ing a he han
me ging egis e s, edundancy is educed while subsidia i y, accoun abili y, and us a e
sa egua ded ac oss public and p i a e ac o s. This dis ibu ed model di ec ly answe s Eu-
opean Pa liamen ’s call o me ada a sys ems ha a e eliable, inclusi e, and suppo i e
o c ea o s.7
2.2.2 Reconciling a ibu ion and p i acy
The p oblem o econciling copy igh a ibu ion wi h GDPR obliga ions canno be sol ed
by igno ing ei he side: bo h a e binding legal equi emen s. Ou app oach, es ed in
he Slo ak Comp ehensi e Music Da abase (SkCMDb), shows ha p og ess is possible
h ough laye ed go e nance and ca e ul balancing. Academic ins i u ions and lib a ies,
wi h hei cul u al and esea ch manda es, can law ully handle pe sonal da a unde de o-
ga ions o public-in e es p ocessing. Collec i e managemen o ganisa ions (CMOs) and
p i a e ac o s, by con as , mus ely on legi ima e in e es es s, suppo ed by anspa en
documen a ion, no i ica ion o igh sholde s, and op -ou mechanisms whe e possible.
ĹIn e ope abili y is a means, no a goal
Ou Slo ak pilo , he Slo ak Comp ehensi e Music Da abase (SKCMDb),
links lib a ies, igh s managemen , s eaming se ices, and he s a is ical office.
This is no “in e ope abili y o i s own sake.” On ologies and c osswalks a e aluable
only inso a as hey enable be e se ices:
6Technically, his co esponds o a p o enance-o ien ed modelling app oach such as he W3C PROV-O
s anda d (W3C 2013b, 2013a), which connec s ac o s, ac i i ies, and en i ies in chains o a ibu ion
(“a compose au ho s a wo k, a pe o me in e p e s i , a p oduce eco ds i …”). These chains can
be exp essed in he laye ed e ms o he Eu opean In e ope abili y F amewo k (EIF), ensu ing legal,
o ganisa ional, seman ic, and echnical in e ope abili y (Commission and Digi al Se ices 2017).
7The Da a Spaces Suppo Cen e (DSSC) Bluep in 2.0 unde lines ha iden i ie s and ulebooks a e
he ounda ion o any common Eu opean da a space (Da a Spaces Suppo Cen e 2025b). In he
music sec o , howe e , a ibu ion iden i ie s hemsel es a e caugh in he GDPR con adic ion (see
Sec ion 2.1.5), which unde sco es he impo ance o edundancy- ee bu legally obus egis a ion
p ac ices.
37

•Fo audiences: making music indable and accessible ac oss cul u al and
comme cial pla o ms.
•Fo igh sholde s: ensu ing ha a ibu ion, iden i ie s, and oyal y lows
a e co ec .
•Fo policymake s: p o iding eliable da a o suppo cul u al policy and o
measu e he music economy.
In sho , in e ope abili y a he da a le el is he condi ion o usable se ices a he
socie al le el.
The Slo ak Memo andum o Unde s anding shows how a ibu ion and da a p o ec-
ion can be balanced in p ac ice.
-Names o au ho s, pe o me s, and p oduce s a e ea ed as public-in e es
in o ma ion necessa y o copy igh and oyal y lows, jus i ied unde legi ima e in e -
es .
-Sensi i e ields (e.g., add esses, na ionali y, pseudonyms) a e excluded om public
laye s and es ic ed o con olled-access ie s.
-Go e nance is dis ibu ed ac oss CMOs, lib a ies, and a chi es, ensu ing subsidia -
i y and us .
This laye ed compliance model demons a es ha copy igh a ibu ion and GDPR
obliga ions can coexis — and o e s a empla e o o he Membe S a es and o he
Eu opean-le el Open Music Obse a o y.
Balancing es s play a cen al ole: each da ase is audi ed, di ided in o public and non-
public ca ego ies, and hen assessed again o pe sonal s. non-pe sonal da a. Public in o -
ma ion such as names o au ho s, pe o me s, and wo k i les—al eady widely a ailable in
ca alogues and conce p og ammes—can jus i iably be sha ed unde legi ima e in e es ,
especially when linked o igh s managemen pu poses. Sensi i e da a (e.g. add esses, na-
ionali y, pseudonyms) equi e s ic e access ie s and a e only made a ailable o selec ed
s akeholde s unde con ac ual sa egua ds.
This laye ed compliance model does no elimina e GDPR challenges, bu i c ea es a
obus de ence: i demons a es ha he legi ima e in e es in accu a e a ibu ion and
oyal y dis ibu ion ou weighs he minimal isks o publishing al eady public in o ma ion.
In p ac ice, his means igh s me ada a can ci cula e ac oss he ecosys em while p i acy-
sensi i e da a a e con ained. Building such wo k lows in o ede a ed obse a o ies and da a
spaces allows he music sec o o comply wi h da a p o ec ion ules wi hou unde mining
a ibu ion, and p o ides a model o Eu opean-scale solu ions.
Mo e b oadly, hese go e nance p ac ices a e suppo ed by exis ing p o isions in EU copy-
igh and da a legisla ion ha al eady gi e me ada a a cen al ole. Righ s Manage-
men In o ma ion (RMI) is explici ly p o ec ed unde A icle 7 o he In oSoc Di ec-
i e (2001/29/EC), making he emo al o al e a ion o a ibu ion da a unlaw ul. The
CRM Di ec i e (2014/26/EU) obliges collec i e managemen o ganisa ions o main ain
accu a e and anspa en epe oi e and membe ship da a. Unde he CDSM Di ec i e
38
(2019/790/EU), A icle 17(4)(b) equi es pla o ms o ac expedi iously on no ices whe e
me ada a enable igh holde s o iden i y and claim hei wo ks, while A icle 4(3) uses
me ada a as he ope a ional basis o ex and da a mining op -ou s. Beyond copy igh ,
he Da a Go e nance Ac (2022/868), he Da a Ac (2023/2854), and he Open Da a Di-
ec i e (2019/1024) p o ide he ho izon al amewo k o ea ing music me ada a as pa
o Eu ope’s eme ging common da a spaces.8
2.2.3 P agma ic me ada a alignmen
A emp s o build one comp ehensi e, ha monised schema o music me ada a ha e e-
pea edly ailed. The sec o is oo di e se: collec i e managemen o ganisa ions, lib a ies,
a chi es, dis ibu o s, and pla o ms all ope a e wi h di e en s anda ds and go e nance
models. T ying o impose a single “g and schema” has p o en b i le, cos ly, and un eal-
is ic.
A mo e wo kable solu ion is modula alignmen . Ins ead o a single hea y on ology, small
eusable building blocks can be combined o desc ibe ecu ing pa e ns — o example,
how people, wo ks, eco dings, and pe o mances a e ela ed. This app oach allows in e -
ope abili y o g ow s ep by s ep, wi hou o cing any ac o o abandon i s sys ems.9
I also helps o sepa a e wo complemen a y asks. On he one hand, we need concep ual
sca olding ha le s di e en da abases desc ibe simila s uc u es in compa able ways.
On he o he , we need iden i ie econcilia ion o make su e ha he same pe son, wo k,
o eco ding can be linked ac oss di e en egis e s. Nei he o hese asks is sufficien on
i s own: hey mus wo k oge he i me ada a is o emain eliable a scale.10
O he domains show how his can be done. Resea ch in as uc u es ha e econciled
ORCID wi h VIAF au ho i y iles, and lib a ies ha e mapped Da aCi e me ada a o
Dublin Co e. Bo h examples show how wo di e en s anda ds can be aligned sys ema -
ically while keeping hei dis inc scopes.11
8See Policy B ie 1: Music Me ada a Mains eaming and EU Law (Sen leben e al. 2024) (Deli e able
D5.6, OpenMusE p ojec ). Tha b ie analyses how hese ins umen s can be mobilised o imp o e
he eliabili y and ci cula ion o music me ada a. The p esen G een Pape complemen s his by
showing how ede a ed obse a o ies and in e ope abili y s a egies can ope a ionalise hese obliga ions
in p ac ice.
9On on ology design pa e ns and modula app oaches, see (Gangemi 2005; Blomq is , Hamma , and
P esu i 2016; Ca ie o e al. 2021). The Poli onia p ojec applied hese me hods a Eu opean scale
(Be a dinis e al. 2023), aligning wi h MusicB ainz and he ChoCo knowledge g aph (Albanese e al.
2023). While Poli onia did no ocus on igh s me ada a, i p o ides a s ong ounda ion o connec ing
musicological knowledge wi h indus y iden i ie s.
10This dis inc ion be ween on ology modelling and iden i ie econcilia ion cla i ies why bo h laye s a e
necessa y. On ology pa e ns p o ide concep ual sca olding (e.g. wo k– eco ding–pe o mance), while
iden i ie econcilia ion ensu es ha an au ho in ISNI is he same as a VIAF au ho i y eco d o a
pe o me in MusicB ainz.
11Fo ORCID–VIAF econcilia ion ia OpenRe ine, see (OpenRe ine Communi y 2021; Jegan e al. 2023).
Fo sys ema ic mappings be ween Da aCi e and Dublin Co e, see (Da aCi e 2021).
39
Figu e 2.4: P agma ic me ada a alignmen elies on modula pa e ns, no “giga-schemas.”
The example shown he e om ou Wikibase pilo encodes oles, e en s,
and p o enance using eusable on ology design pa e ns. This allowed
iden i ie s om igh s managemen (ISWC, ISRC) o be econciled wi h
lib a y au ho i ies (ISNI, VIAF), p o ing ha in e ope abili y can be
achie ed inc emen ally wi hou o cing any ac o o abandon i s sys ems. DOI:
[10.6084/m9. igsha e.30075379. 1](h ps://doi.o g/10.6084/m9. igsha e.30075379. 1)
Music me ada a needs he same pe iodic econcilia ion. Righ s iden i ie s such as ISRC,
ISWC, and ISMN we e designed sepa a ely and d i apa i no ac i ely main ained. The
same applies o pe sonal and o ganisa ional iden i ie s such as ISNI, VIAF, and IPI. Wi h-
ou ac i e c oss-checking, eco ds agmen , causing duplica ion and inconsis ency.12
In ou pilo s, his modula alignmen has al eady been es ed. The Slo ak Comp ehen-
si e Music Da abase econciled igh s iden i ie s wi h lib a y au ho i ies wi hou schema
uni ica ion. MusicBase used Wikibase o encode oles, e en s, and p o enance in a way
ha le co ec ions p opaga e ac oss sys ems. The Unlabel wo k low s eamlined me a-
da a cap u e o sel - eleasing a is s and lib a ies, allowing once-only documen a ion o
be eused ac oss dis ibu ion and p ese a ion. These cases ex end ou p oposal o Open
Music Regis e s, which a gued o ede a ed, edundancy- ee me ada a wo k lows, in o he
b oade go e nance amewo k o his G een Pape .
Finally, his app oach is consis en wi h wo k in he he i age sec o . The He i age Digi al
Twin On ology (HDTO), de eloped wi hin he Eu opean Cul u al He i age Cloud, uses
he same p inciples o modula i y and ede a ion o desc ibe angible and in angible asse s.
Whe e HDTO p o ides a seman ic amewo k o he i age “digi al wins,” he Open Music
12On he di e gence o iden i ie s i no main ained, see (Paskin 2006).
40
Obse a o y ex ends he same logic o music. Bo h models show how cul u al and igh s
me ada a can in eg a e wi h wide Eu opean da a spaces while p ese ing subsidia i y and
ins i u ional di e si y.13
13The ECHOES He i age Digi al Twin On ology (HDTO) builds on CIDOC CRM ex ensions o
model angible and in angible he i age wi h space– ime–cul u al iden i y (ECHOES On ology Task
Fo ce 2025).
41
dedica ed wo k low o music, and indus y up ake emains minimal. As wi h ECCCH,
music is unde ep esen ed and igh s-awa e cu a ion pa hways a e absen .9
The Eu opean In e ope abili y F amewo k (EIF) helps explain why hese gaps pe -
sis . In e ope abili y depends no only on o ma s bu also on legal, o ganisa ional, seman-
ic, and echnical alignmen . Wi hou sha ed go e nance and p o iles, public and p i a e
sys ems di e ge. The p inciple o subsidia i y adds ano he laye : s ewa dship o e cul-
u al da a is dis ibu ed ac oss na ional and egional au ho i ies, as well as p i a e ac o s.
Cen alisa ion is he e o e bo h imp ac ical and poli ically illegi ima e. The challenge is
no whe he decen alisa ion should exis , bu how o make decen alised con ibu ions
wo k oge he .10
This challenge di ec ly mo i a es he Obse a o y’s b idging ole wi h EOSC, Eu opeana,
and ECCCH, elabo a ed in Sec ion 3.211.
3.1.5 Subsidia i y and in as uc u es o scaling music da a
The Eu opean p inciple o subsidia i y equi es ha decisions be aken as closely as
possible o he ci izens hey a ec . In cul u al policy, his means ha esponsibili ies a e
dis ibu ed ac oss mul iple le els: in some Membe S a es, cul u e is managed egionally
o p o incially; in o he s, na ionally. Beyond public adminis a ions, many impo an
da ase s a e held by p i a e ac o s — collec i e managemen o ganisa ions, pla o ms, o
a chi es. Any a emp o cen alise music da a go e nance would he e o e isk losing bo h
legi imacy and local ele ance.
Ins ead, subsidia i y mus be buil in o he design o he Obse a o y. The Eu opean
In e ope abili y F amewo k (EIF) p o ides a laye ed model — legal, o ganisa ional,
seman ic, and echnical — o econciling go e nance ac oss ins i u ions. The Da a Go -
e nance Ac (DGA) codi ies he same p inciple: Membe S a es e ain s ewa dship o e
sensi i e da ase s, bu EU-le el s anda ds ensu e hey can ci cula e secu ely and compa a-
bly ac oss bo de s. The Da a Space Suppo Cen e (DSSC) ex ends his app oach
in o p ac ice, de eloping bluep in s and building blocks ha allow decen alised ini ia i es
o scale. Toge he , hese amewo ks show how subsidia i y and ede a ion a e no ba ie s
bu design p inciples o da a spaces.12
9EOSC p o ides ede a ed access and pe sis ence h ough Zenodo and OpenAIRE, bu music wo k lows
emain ma ginal. On EOSC’s ole, see he Eu opean S a egy o Da a (Eu opean Commission 2020).
10The EIF de ines laye ed in e ope abili y (legal, o ganisa ional, seman ic, echnical) (Commission and
Digi al Se ices 2017). The Eu opean S a egy o Da a ames subsidia i y as compa ible wi h ede -
a ion (Eu opean Commission 2020). BDVA and he Fede a ion Wo king G oup emphasise ha in e -
ope abili y amewo ks a e needed o ope a ionalise ede a ion (BDVA/DAIRO 2023; BDVA/DAIRO
Fede a ion Wo king G oup 2023).
11The EIF de ines laye ed in e ope abili y (legal, o ganisa ional, seman ic, echnical) (Commission and
Digi al Se ices 2017). The Eu opean S a egy o Da a ames subsidia i y as compa ible wi h ede -
a ion (Eu opean Commission 2020). BDVA and he Fede a ion Wo king G oup emphasise ha in e -
ope abili y amewo ks a e needed o ope a ionalise ede a ion (BDVA/DAIRO 2023; BDVA/DAIRO
Fede a ion Wo king G oup 2023).
12On subsidia i y and ede a ion: he Da a Go e nance Ac (Eu opean Pa liamen and Council 2022)
and he Eu opean S a egy o Da a (Eu opean Commission 2020). On echnical amewo ks: DSSC’s
48

A he echnical le el, Wikida a and Wikibase p o ide a p o en backbone o collab-
o a i e me ada a managemen . They a e al eady embedded in EU in as uc u es such
as he official EU Knowledge G aph and in na ional p ojec s like Me aBelgica in Bel-
gium. In Flande s, he pe o ming a s ield has gone u he : since 2017, Kuns enpun
and meemoo ha e published decades o pe o ming a s da a on Wikida a, showing how
en ichmen happens au oma ically once da a becomes pa o a wide ecosys em. These
pilo s illus a e how subsidia i y and ede a ion can wo k in p ac ice, wi h decen alised
ac o s main aining con ol o hei own da a while con ibu ing o a sha ed amewo k.13
The p oblem o scale makes such in as uc u es essen ial. La ge pla o ms and labels
can manage millions o asse s cheaply, bu small ac o s canno . Wi hou sha ed sys ems,
independen and communi y-based epe oi es emain undocumen ed because he cos o
p ope egis a ion exceeds likely e enue. Fede a ed ools — s eng hened by au oma ion
and AI — a e he only ealis ic way o close his gap.
ĹFinno-Ug ic Da a Sha ing Space
Ou pilo wi h he Finno-Ug ic Da a Sha ing Space illus a es subsidia i y in
p ac ice (see: h ps:// innoug ic.ne /). By collabo a ing wi h egional NGOs and
na ional a chi es, we cu a ed and epai ed da ase s ha would ha e emained in isible
in a cen al eposi o y. The p ojec showed ha decen alised ac o s a e bes placed o
manage hei own da a, bu ha in e ope abili y amewo ks and sha ed obse abili y
laye s can connec hem e ec i ely 14.
In e na ional compa ison con i ms his. In he Uni ed S a es, he Mechanical Licensing
Collec i e (MLC) was c ea ed in 2021 o adminis e a blanke mechanical license o
s eaming and downloads. I inhe i ed mo e han $424 million in unma ched oyal ies
and de eloped la ge-scale econcilia ion sys ems o alloca e hem. By 2022, i had al eady
dis ibu ed nea ly $700 million. The MLC shows wha can be achie ed when iden i ie s
such as ISWC and ISRC a e used sys ema ically and backed by law. Bu i also highligh s
he limi s o cen alisa ion: c ea o s mus s ill claim and main ain hei eco ds, educa ion
gaps pe sis , and dispu es be ween pla o ms and igh s bodies con inue.15
ĹThe U.S. Mechanical Licensing Collec i e (MLC)
The Mechanical Licensing Collec i e was c ea ed unde he U.S. Music Mode niza ion
Ac (2018) o adminis e a blanke mechanical license o s eaming and downloads.
I inhe i ed mo e han $424 million in unma ched oyal ies om digi al se ices and
de eloped la ge-scale econcilia ion sys ems o alloca e hem. By la e 2022, i had
bluep in s (Da a Spaces Suppo Cen e 2025b, 2025a). On go e nance: BDVA (BDVA/DAIRO 2023)
and he Fede a ion Wo king G oup (BDVA/DAIRO Fede a ion Wo king G oup 2023).
13On official adop ion: EU Knowledge G aph (Die enbach, De Wilde, and Alipio 2021); SEMIC guidelines
(SEMIC Suppo Cen e 2023). On Belgian pilo s: Me aBelgica (S allmann e al. 2023) and Flemish
pe o ming a s en ichmen (Magnus and Van D’huynslage 2021).
14See (An al e al. 2025; An al, Pigozne, and Fede ico 2025).
15On he MLC’s es ablishmen and ope a ions: (Mechanical Licensing Collec i e 2021); on con es ed
go e nance and dispu es wi h pla o ms: (Va ghese 2024).
49
dis ibu ed nea ly $700 million.
The MLC shows wha can be achie ed when iden i ie s (ISWC, ISRC) a e cap u ed
sys ema ically and backed by legisla ion. Bu i also highligh s he limi s o cen al-
isa ion: c ea o s mus s ill claim and main ain hei eco ds, educa ion gaps pe sis ,
and dispu es be ween pla o ms and igh s bodies con inue. Fo Eu ope, he lesson is
clea : scaling me ada a in as uc u e is possible, bu i mus espec subsidia i y and
ede a ion a he han ely on a single cen al clea inghouse (Mechanical Licensing
Collec i e 2021; Va ghese 2024).
3.1.6 Economies o scale in me ada a
La ge pla o ms and majo labels can documen millions o acks a e y low pe -uni
cos , because hey manage e e y hing in bulk. Smalle ac o s — independen labels, non-
p o i s, o communi y a chi es — ace he opposi e si ua ion: he cos o egis e ing and
main aining each ack is o en highe han he e enue i will e e gene a e. This imbal-
ance explains why so many “ ozen” asse s emain un egis e ed and in isible in oday’s
digi al ecosys em.
Wi hou a way o sha e in as uc u e, small ac o s emain s uck. They canno a o d he
pe - ack cos o ull documen a ion, ye unde -documen a ion ensu es hei wo k emains
undisco e ed. This is no jus an accoun ing issue, bu a s uc u al ba ie o di e si y
in music da a lows. A ede a ed app oach, as ou lined in Sec ion 3.2.2, is essen ial o
ebalance hese inequali ies and enable small ac o s o bene i om he same efficiencies
as global playe s.16
3.2 Policy P oposals
ÁEdi ing eminde
• Open Music Obse a o y as he con ening + con o mance + obse abili y
laye (no a single da abase).
• Wo k low playbooks: igh s→dis ibu ion→cha ing→p ese a ion; change-
p opaga ion pa e ns; p o enance ails ha su i e sys em bounda ies.
• Legal/s anda ds/public in es men inline: GDPR legal bases pe low; ecom-
16Compa a i e esea ch shows ha cos s pe asse dec ease sha ply wi h ca alogue size, c ea ing scale
ad an ages o majo s and global pla o ms. Wi hou sha ed in as uc u es, small ac o s a e disp o-
po iona ely disad an aged. The Feasibili y S udy o a Eu opean Music Obse a o y emphasised his
imbalance as a s uc u al ba ie (Commission e al. 2020, p9), while he Music Ecosys em 2025 s udy
highligh ed how agmen a ion and duplica ion ein o ce hese scale inequali ies (Music Mo es Eu ope
2024).
50
mended codes o conduc ; ligh weigh policy o da a i ness/quali y; unding
hooks (ECCCH pilo s, na ional minis ies).
ĹPublic–p i a e econcilia ion in p ac ice
Reconciling public and p i a e in as uc u es: The ALOADED pilo in
La ia
The Unlabel wo k low was es ed wi h La ian a chi es and he dis ibu o
ALOADED, showing how public he i age me ada a can be econciled wi h p i a e
supply chains.
• A chi al eco dings (Hilda G i a’s songs and La ian/La galian midsumme
songs) we e loca ed in he La ian A chi es o Folklo e.
• Me ada a was ansla ed, en iched, and aligned wi h in e na ional au ho i y
iles.
• ALOADED ex ended his me ada a wi h DDEX-complian ca alogue
ans e and inges ed i in o Spo i y and o he pla o ms.
This demons a ed ha econcilia ion be ween public in as uc u es (a chi es)
and p i a e in as uc u es (dis ibu o s and pla o ms) is bo h echnically
and ins i u ionally easible, econnec ing supp essed o ma ginalised epe oi es wi h
con empo a y audiences.
See a mo e echnical desc ip ion o wha we did he e.
Con o mance and obse abili y ules in he Open Music Obse a o y should be designed
in line wi h he Eu opean In e ope abili y F amewo k (EIF) and he FAIR da a p inciples.
This ensu es compa ibili y wi h wide Eu opean da a space ini ia i es and educes in e-
g a ion cos s o ins i u ions al eady adap ing o hese s anda ds (Commission e al. 2020,
p9).
51
Figu e 3.2: The Open Music Obse a o y si s whe e open science, public sec o in-
o ma ion euse, and music indus y wo k lows o e lap. By aligning
wi h he Eu opean In e ope abili y F amewo k, i c ea es a sha ed space
whe e lib a ies, igh s manage s, publishe s, and esea che s can collab-
o a e. This posi ioning highligh s OMO’s ole as a b idge be ween
cul u al he i age, comme cial dis ibu ion, and open knowledge. DOI:
[10.6084/m9. igsha e.30073267. 1](10.6084/m9. igsha e.30073267. 1)
3.2.1 Wo k low playbooks and p o enance ails
The Obse a o y should no only ha monise da a o ma s bu also documen wo k low
playbooks ha cap u e how me ada a lows ac oss he music li ecycle:
• om igh s egis a ion,
• o dis ibu ion and oyal y a ibu ion,
• o cha ing and isibili y,
• o long- e m p ese a ion.
Each s ep should include change-p opaga ion ules: i a co ec ion is made in one egis-
e , i should ipple h ough o o he s. P o enance ails mus su i e sys em bounda ies,
using s anda ds such as PROV-O o show who did wha , when, and unde wha au ho i y.
This makes co ec ions audi able, suppo s c oss-bo de compa abili y, and p e en s “da a
dea h” when an asse lea es i s o iginal sys em.
52
3.2.2 Fede a ed in as uc u e as a cos and go e nance solu ion
The imbalance desc ibed in Sec ion 3.1.6 makes one hing clea : small ac o s canno com-
pe e on me ada a wi hou sha ed in as uc u es. Fede a ion, no cen alisa ion, is he
only iable way o wa d.
Ada a sha ing space p o ides he amewo k. Ins ead o o cing e e yone in o a single
me ada a schema o legal ag eemen , i allows o ganisa ions o sha e and euse da a on an
“as-needed” o “as-pe mi ed” basis, while keeping ull con ol o hei own asse s. Fo music
— whe e igh s, iden i ie s, and con en a e dispe sed ac oss hund eds o mic o-ac o s and
ins i u ions — his model a oids bo h duplica ion and dependency. C ucially, i also a oids
c ea ing a new single ga ekeepe : cen alisa ion isks no only echnical b i leness bu also
he eme gence o a monopolis ic in e media y able o close access o impose condi ions on
o he s17.
Music is one o he mos demanding es cases o Eu opean da a go e nance. A ibu ion
ules in e ac wi h p i acy law, iden i ie s a e used une enly ac oss he sec o , and mos
music en e p ises a e oo small o build hei own compliance o documen a ion in as-
uc u e. I a ede a ed model can unc ion in his en i onmen , i can unc ion anywhe e.
Bu decen alisa ion b ings i s own challenges: o ganisa ions wi h s onge in as uc u es
may p e e o p o ec compe i i e ad an ages by wi hholding da a. E ec i e go e nance
he e o e has o make pa icipa ion mo e a ac i e han isola ion — h ough lowe admin-
is a i e cos s, inc eased isibili y, legal cla i y, o sha ed compliance bene i s. In p ac ical
e ms, his means combining ha d alignmen (such as minimal me ada a p o iles and he
use o basic iden i ie s) wi h so alignmen (such as mappings, c osswalks, and wo k low
playbooks). This mix allows di e en ac o s o nego ia e in e ope abili y wi hou o cing
anyone in o a single model.
Fo hese easons, he Eu opean Music Obse a o y canno be designed as a single cen al
da abase. I mus ac as a con ening and obse abili y laye — a place whe e decen alised
con ibu ions can be compa ed, connec ed, and eused. Such a s uc u e educes duplica-
ion, lowe s cos s o smalle ac o s, imp o es a ibu ion, and p o ides a s able go e nance
ounda ion o us wo hy AI and e idence-based cul u al policy.
Eu ope al eady has he policy and echnical ounda ions o his. The Eu opean S a egy o
Da a, he Da a Go e nance Ac , and he Da a Ac all de ine da a spaces as ede a ed by
design, suppo ed by us amewo ks, ulebooks, and sha ed se ices.18 The Da a Spaces
Suppo Cen e (DSSC) has ansla ed hese in o p ac ical bluep in s ha can be applied
di ec ly o he music sec o .19 O he domains o e conc e e p eceden s: he ISRC sys em
17Ou de ini ion he e is an ex ended pa aph ase o (Cu y 2020) and e lec s ha a “da a [sha ing] space
is an ecosys em o exchange, p ocessing, sha ing and p o ision o da a be ween us ed pa ne s, o a
ee o no ” om (EBU and Gaia-X 2022, p16).
18The Eu opean S a egy o Da a (2020) de ines Common Eu opean Da a Spaces as ede a ed ecosys ems,
while he Da a Go e nance Ac (2022) and Da a Ac (2023) supply he go e nance and access ules
(Eu opean Commission 2020; Eu opean Pa liamen and Council 2022).
19The Da a Spaces Suppo Cen e (DSSC), led by KU Leu en wi h GAIA-X and BDVA, p o ides p ac ical
bluep in s and building blocks o implemen ing ede a ed da a spaces in any domain (Da a Spaces
Suppo Cen e 2025b, 2025a).
53

dis ibu es esponsibili ies ac oss na ional agencies; CISAC’s CIS-Ne p o ides access o
igh s da a wi hou cen alising owne ship; and Eu opean s a is ical sys ems ha monise
indica o s h ough subsidia i y a he han h ough cen al eposi o ies. The music sec o
can — and should — build upon he same logic: dis ibu ed s ewa dship, sha ed s anda ds,
and coo dina ed in e ope abili y.
Conce ns abou so e eign y make his design choice e en mo e u gen . Wi hou a Eu opean
solu ion, me ada a in as uc u es isk d i ing owa d US-s yle cen alisa ion, such as he
Mechanical Licensing Collec i e (MLC), whe e ma ke powe and legisla i e manda es con-
e ge in a single hub. Deli e able D5.6 o he OpenMusE p ojec explici ly wa ns agains
his ou come: unless Eu ope de elops i s own ede a ed me ada a in as uc u es, i isks
ou sou cing con ol o e isibili y, a ibu ion, and oyal y da a o o eign pla o ms.20
Ou p oposal o a ede a ed Open Music Obse a o y he e o e complemen s his legal-
ins i u ional analysis. Whe e D5.6 highligh s he p o isions in EU law ha can be mo-
bilised, he p esen G een Pape demons a es how a dis ibu ed da aspace model can
ansla e hem in o p ac ice. Taken oge he , hey o e a dual s a egy — one legal-
ins i u ional, one cul u al-so e eign y — o secu ing Eu ope’s music ecosys ems.
In p ac ical e ms, his means applying cap u e once, euse many pipelines ac oss he en-
i e music li ecycle: om egis a ion o wo ks and eco dings, h ough dis ibu ion and
oyal y a ibu ion, o p ese a ion and cul u al s a is ics. To achie e his, he Obse a-
o y mus be designed as a edundancy- ee egis a ion space, aligned wi h he Eu opean
In e ope abili y F amewo k and p o enance-o ien ed models such as PROV-O.21
Done well, his would ebalance he playing ield: lowe ing cos s o small ac o s, mak-
ing da ase s in e ope able ac oss ins i u ions, and ensu ing ha Eu ope’s cul u al and
economic policies es on eliable e idence a he han agmen ed silos.
3.2.3 Legal, s anda ds, and unding le e s
Fo hese p oposals o succeed, hey mus be backed by legal cla i y, ligh weigh s anda ds,
and public in es men :
•Legal: GDPR legal bases should be speci ied o each da a low (legi ima e in e es
o a ibu ion; esea ch and cul u al he i age exemp ions o a chi es).
•S anda ds: Codes o conduc and minimum p o iles should keep con o mance
achie able e en o mic o-en e p ises.
20See Policy B ie 1: Music Me ada a Mains eaming and EU Law (Sen leben e al. 2024). The b ie
wa ns ha US-s yle cen alisa ion (e.g. he MLC) shows he isks o ailing o es ablish Eu opean
me ada a in as uc u es. This G een Pape complemen s his by p esen ing he ede a ed, cul u e-led
model o an Open Music Obse a o y as Eu ope’s so e eign y-p ese ing al e na i e.
21The EIF ensu es in e ope abili y ac oss legal, o ganisa ional, seman ic, and echnical laye s (Commission
and Digi al Se ices 2017). The W3C’s PROV model and PROV-O on ology o e a s anda d way o
connec ac o s, ac i i ies, and en i ies in chains o a ibu ion (W3C 2013b, 2013a). Applied oge he ,
hey enable consis en acking o economic and cul u al lows wi hou cen alising da abases.
54
•Funding: ECCCH pilo s, na ional minis ies, and EU p og ammes should explici ly
suppo me ada a i ness and da a-quali y imp o emen s as public-in e es in as uc-
u e.
Embedding hese le e s ensu es ha in e ope abili y does no emain olun a y bu be-
comes a suppo ed and sus ainable p ac ice ac oss Eu ope.
3.2.4 Alignmen wi h he Eu opean Open Science Cloud
B idge cul u al clouds and ma ke wo k lows ia a ede a ed Music Da a Sha -
ing Space. Posi ion he Open Music Obse a o y as he con ening + con o mance +
obse abili y laye ha connec s ECCCH/Eu opeana and GLAM au ho i y iles wi h in-
dus y pipelines. Conc e ely:
1. Cap u e once, euse many ac oss c ea ion→ egis a ion→dis ibu ion→p ese a ion.
2. Requi e minimal p o iles ha smalle ac o s can ac ually implemen .
3. P io i ise iden i ie c osswalks (ISRC�ISWC�ISNI�VIAF/Wikida a) and change-
p opaga ion.
4. Use Wikibase/Wikida a as a low- ic ion backbone whe e app op ia e.
5. Go e n wi h EIF/FAIR-aligned ules, audi abili y, and PPP pa icipa ion so igh s-
holde s and memo y ins i u ions keep s ewa dship while in e ope a ing.
This e ames Eu ope’s in es men s om siloed eposi o ies in o a sha ed da a space
ha lowe s econcilia ion cos s, espec s subsidia i y, and makes cul u al me ada a usable
ac oss public and comme cial con ex s — he p ac ical ounda ion o any u u e Eu opean
Music Obse a o y.
55
4 AI ha Wo ks o Music, No Agains
I
Mos AI p ojec s ail because hey chase hype. MIT’s P ojec NANDA ound ha 95% o
en e p ise ini ia i es wi h gene a i e AI deli e ed no measu able alue. Budge s we e spen
on lashy pilo s in sales o ma ke ing, while he eal po en ial — educing back-office cos s,
p olonging he li e o legacy sys ems, and a oiding cons an IT chu n — was o e looked.
Ou app oach is di e en . We do no see AI as “ o i s own sake.” Ins ead, we ea i
as a way o educe IT chu n, keep legacy sys ems ali e longe , and cu bo h capi al and
ope a ing expenses. Whe e once e e y new egula ion, dis ibu o change, o ca alogue
mig a ion equi ed cos ly upg ades, cu a i e AI can pa ch ou pu s om exis ing
so wa e, ex end he li espan o old sys ems, and make hem in e ope able
wi h new ones. Sha ed in as uc u es make his p ac ical o mic o-en e p ises, NGOs,
and collec i e managemen o ganisa ions (CMOs), who could ne e main ain such capaci y
in-house.
The Eu opean Pa liamen ’s esolu ion on he music s eaming ma ke wa ns o he isks
ha AI-gene a ed con en poses o disco e abili y, a ibu ion, and ai emune a ion
i me ada a emains incomple e o un eliable. A he same ime, he Music Ecosys em
2025 s udy highligh s ha AI will be bo h a dis up ion and an oppo uni y: while i can
o e whelm sys ems wi h syn he ic ma e ial, i also o e s ools o au oma e documen a ion,
educe cos s, and s eng hen e idence-based policymaking (Music Mo es Eu ope 2024, 23–
24).
56
A i icial in elligence is he e o e cen al o he u u e o Eu ope’s music ecosys em. On
one hand, i h ea ens o exace ba e exis ing inequali ies by concen a ing echnological
ad an ages in pla o ms and majo igh s holde s. On he o he , i can epai , en ich, and
au oma e p ocesses ha a e o he wise p ohibi i ely cos ly o small ac o s. The challenge
is no whe he AI will be used, bu whe he i s bene i s will be dis ibu ed ai ly ac oss
he ecosys em.
Eu opean policy p o ides guidance o his balancing ac . The E hics Guidelines o T us -
wo hy AI unde line ha AI mus be law ul, e hical, and obus h oughou i s li ecycle
(Commission, Di ec o a e-Gene al o Communica ions Ne wo ks, and Technology 2019).
The Ge ing he Fu u e Righ epo by he Fundamen al Righ s Agency s esses he need
o align AI wi h undamen al igh s, especially whe e ulne able g oups and cul u al pa -
icipa ion a e conce ned (Eu opean Union Agency o Fundamen al Righ s 2020). Mos
ecen ly, he AI Ac ensh ines a isk-based egula o y amewo k, de ining obliga ions o
p o ide s and deploye s o AI sys ems while eaffi ming he p inciples o subsidia i y and
p opo ionali y in EU digi al policy (Eu opean Pa liamen and Council 2024).
Ou own engagemen wi h hese issues began wi h he Lis en Local easibili y s udy in
2020. By expe imen ing wi h he Spo i y API, we disco e ed ha Slo ak use s we e a ely
ecommended Slo ak music — no because Spo i y was a aul , bu because he da a abou
local epe oi e was spa se. Spo i y’s open API was, in ac , uniquely anspa en compa ed
o compe i o s, and i enabled us o see a la ge policy p oblem: wi hou s uc u ed,
machine- eadable knowledge o di e se epe oi es, algo i hms canno deli e ai ou comes.
This lesson has guided ou wo k e e since: imp o ing me ada a and in e ope abili y is
he i s s ep o be e AI go e nance.
57
The Unlabel pilo illus a es his p oblem: by ea ing ca alogue ans e s and documen-
a ion as high-cos , high- ic ion p ocesses, aluable epe oi es emain locked away. AI-
assis ed me ada a epai and DDEX-complian ca alogue ans e wo k lows p o ide a
pa hway o lowe cos s and b ing neglec ed epe oi es back in o ci cula ion.
ĹNo e
Example: Old SQL Da abase in a Cul u al Ins i u ion
• A label o a chi e has a eco ding s o ed in a 20–30 yea -old SQL da abase,
buil on a schema ha was ne e ully documen ed. The sys em’s au ho is
e i ed (o no longe ali e).
• The ins i u ion wan s o e- elease he eco ding, bu o dis ibu e i oday, he
me ada a mus be exp essed in DDEX Ca alogue T ans e messages — a
comple ely di e en schema, designed decades la e .
Cu a i e AI
• Ac s a he sys em le el: i can “ ead” he old da abase s uc u e, in e undoc-
umen ed ield meanings, and pa ch ou pu s so he legacy da abase can s ill
alk o mode n pipelines.
• Ins ead o ebuilding o mig a ing he old da abase (expensi e, isky), cu a i e
AI ex ends i s li espan by making i s ou pu s usable.
Repa a i e AI
• Ac s a he me ada a/epis emic le el: i can de ec inconsis encies o missing
ields (e.g., compose names s o ed in ee- ex no es, i les in mixed languages)
and e o ma o en ich hem in o s uc u ed DDEX-complian ields.
• This no only enables dis ibu ion bu also es o es isibili y o wo ks ha
migh o he wise emain apped in inaccessible o ma s.
The policy poin
• Wi hou cu a i e/ epa a i e AI, such eco dings isk becoming “ ozen asse s”:
legally owned bu p ac ically undis ibu able because he me ada a canno be
ans o med.
• By in es ing in hese AI uses, Eu ope can p ese e access o cul u al he i age,
educe IT chu n, and ensu e ha bo h he i age a chi es and independen
labels can connec o mode n digi al alue chains.
Unlike U.S.-s yle copy igh , Eu ope’s au ho ’s igh s egime con ains a mo al componen .
Au ho s (and, o a pe iod, hei hei s) e ain ce ain igh s o e how hei wo ks a e used,
e en a e economic igh s expi e. This ecognises ha wo ks a e pa o a c ea o ’s mo al
64

and cul u al he i age, no only economic asse s. Va ious legal no ms, o example, local
con en guidelines, also ga e ool ea lie o na ional o e hnic communi ies o p o ide some
gua d ails o he use o hei sha ed he i age, e en his means communi y s ewa dship and
no inhe i ance in legal e ms.
Me ada a epai and publica ion s eng hen isibili y, bu also c ea e isks ha gene a i e
AI will use hese wo ks in ways ha unde mine mo al igh s, whe e hei s objec o uses
hey see as dis o ing o i ialising an au ho ’s legacy and communi y s ewa dship
no ms, whe e g oups pe cei e hei olk o mino i y he i age as being misapp op ia ed,
e en when no legal in ingemen occu s.
While we do no iden i y hese challenges a his poin as simila ly ac ionable public
policy challenges as he p oblems o GDRP and he c ea ion o us wo hy music AI,
egula o s do ace poli ical isk i e hical expec a ions o communi ies a ound cul u al
s ewa dship a e no add essed. E en i no au ho ’s igh s o o he legal no ms a e b eached,
he abili y o c ea e “ ake” Li onian, La ian o Basque olk songs may s ongly con lic
wi h he expec a ion o communi ies on he e hical use o AI.
4.1.6 AI suppo o in es men in o new epe oi e asse s
While gene a i e AI ha dis ega ds human epe oi es can unde mine cul u al alue, AI
also has cons uc i e oles. Jus as pho og aphe s bene i om embedded AI in ools like
Pho oshop o GIMP, musicians and p oduce s can use AI o educe he cos s o composi-
ion, eco ding, and documen a ion. In p ac ice, his means ha c ea ing new wo ks and
egis e ing hem wi h iden i ie s can become less bu densome and mo e accessible.
This pe spec i e aligns wi h he Eu opean Pa liamen ’s call o “me ada a om bi h”
(Eu opean Pa liamen 2024), bu i goes u he . AI can no only gene a e me ada a au-
oma ically a he momen o c ea ion, bu also suppo sound eco ding, sco ing, and
a chi ing p ocesses di ec ly, ensu ing ha new asse s en e ci cula ion wi h comple e, in-
e ope able me ada a.
4.2 Policy P oposals: Aligning AI wi h Go e nance and
Value C ea ion
Gene a i e, agen ic, and in e ence AI a e now wo en in o he global c ea i e economy. Bu
alue is no c ea ed by algo i hms alone — i comes om go e nance, cu a ed da a,
and ins i u ions ha ensu e us . Policy in e en ions a e needed on h ee le els:
EU,indus y, and o ganisa ional.
Ou ocus is he me ada a and da a needs o he music ecosys em — labels, dis ib-
u o s, publishe s, manage s, CMOs, a chi es — no he c ea i e ac o composing music
i sel .
65
4.2.1 EU-Le el Policy: Compass and Gua d ails
•Embed cul u al sec o s in he EU AI Ac & Da a Spaces so music and
cul u al indus ies a e no ea ed as “low isk.”
•Subsidise sha ed AI u ili ies o iden i ie econcilia ion, me ada a epai , and
aud/plagia ism de ec ion.
•Adop “me ada a om bi h” p inciples: embed ISNI/ISWC/ISRC iden i ie s
a he poin o c ea ion.
•Tax incen i es o onboa ding ozen asse s, suppo ing digi isa ion and
en ichmen o unde -documen ed ca alogues.
•Resol e a ibu ion s GDPR con lic s h ough legal cla i ica ion o ju isp u-
dence, enabling ai ness es ing and copy igh compliance.
4.2.2 Indus y-Le el Policy: S anda ds and Collabo a ion
•Codes o conduc o AI in music, modelled on GDPR codes.
•Iden i ie c osswalks ac oss ISRC, ISWC, ISNI, VIAF, e c.
•Fede a ed AI se ices o claims, econcilia ion, mul ilingual en ichmen .
•T aining and eskilling o close he AI/da a alen gap.
•Wo king capi al op imisa ion h ough AI-assis ed claims and as e dis ibu ions.
These p inciples do no s and in isola ion: hey echo and ex end ongoing wo k such as he
Responsible AI Music amewo k, ensu ing ha sec o -speci ic p ac ices in Eu ope
a e consis en wi h eme ging in e na ional s anda ds.5
4.2.3 O ganisa ional-Le el Policy: Playbooks o CMOs, Publishe s,
A chi es
•Embed AI in wo k lows so me ada a is gene a ed and alida ed du ing c e-
a ion/dis ibu ion.
5The Responsible AI Music amewo k (RAIM) se s ou p inciples o anspa ency, ai ness, sus ain-
abili y, and accoun abili y in he use o AI in music (He emans, S u m, e al. 2025). Se e al o he
codes o conduc p oposed he e — such as cla i y a ound da a p o enance, sa egua ds o a ibu ion,
and limi s on exploi a i e ecommenda ion p ac ices — align closely wi h RAIM’s ecommenda ions.
Whe e RAIM de ines b oad p inciples, his G een Pape p o ides conc e e mechanisms o hei ope -
a ionalisa ion wi hin Eu opean music da a spaces and obse a o ies.
66
•Cap u e once, euse many imes, educing edundan e-en y.
•In es in knowledge capi al, no IT chu n (on ologies, ocabula ies, mul ilin-
gual en ichmen ).
•Subsc ibe o sha ed AI u ili ies ins ead o bespoke in-house builds.
•De elop in e nal AI go e nance — e en small ac o s can appoin an “AI s ew-
a d.”
4.2.4 Cu a i e AI and Repa a i e AI as a Remedia ion Solu ion
While da a spaces es ablish ules o new da a lows, hey do no add ess he legacy
backlog o poo ly o ma ed o incomple e open da a. He e, cu a i e AI p o ides a
complemen a y solu ion.
AI-assis ed se ices can de ec duplica es, in e missing iden i ie s, econcile he e ogeneous
o ma s, and en ich me ada a wi h mul ilingual desc ip ions. In e ec , hey ans o m
da ase s ha a e legally open bu p ac ically unusable in o esou ces ha can ci cula e
ac oss he ecosys em.
ĹNo e
Cu a i e AI as egene a ion, no eplacemen
Figu e 4.1: ���� (Ise G and Sh ine): a wooden sanc ua y in con inuous use o 1,600
yea s hanks o egene a ion p ac ices handed down h ough gene a ions.
The Ise G and Sh ine in Japan has been in con inuous use o 1,600 yea s — no
because i s wooden beams ne e o ed, bu because he knowledge o enewal was
embedded and ansmi ed ac oss gene a ions. The ue asse was he embedded
know-how o egene a ion, no any single plank o wood.
67
Cu a i e AI can play he same ole in he digi al domain:
- Ex end he li e o legacy sys ems by ixing pa chy ou pu s om old ERPs, ca a-
logues, o dis ibu o so wa e.
- P ese e he me hods o epai : how o econcile co up ed eco ds, eshape da a
o new sys ems, and upg ade da abases while emaining compa ible wi h olde o -
ma s.
- T ans o m in es men logic: ins ead o cons an capex o new IT sys ems, sha ed
da a in as uc u es wi h cu a i e AI educe cos s, smoo h opex, and deli e u u e-
p oo and pas -p oo se ices.
Ou pilo s — such as Unlabel and SKCMDb — show ha new alue can be c ea ed
wi hou addi ional IT in es men o sys em upg ades by he pa icipa ing companies,
lib a ies, and igh s managemen agencies.
Thus, go e nance and emedia ion a e wo sides o he same coin:
-Da a sha ing spaces ensu e ha new da a is c ea ed in in e ope able ways.
-Cu a i e AI epai s he inhe i ed s ock o legacy and low-quali y da ase s.
Toge he , hey close he gap be ween he igh o euse (g an ed by he Open Da a Di ec-
i e) and he means o euse equi ed o music, cul u e, and AI-d i en inno a ion.
4.2.5 Lowe ing Documen a ion Ba ie s
We p opose o adap Unlabel’s app oach as a model o un eezing ozen asse s. By
le e aging AI-assis ed me ada a epai and DDEX-complian ca alogue ans e wo k lows,
documen a ion cos s can be educed enough o enable non-p o i s, small labels, and com-
muni y a chi es o egis e and edis ibu e neglec ed epe oi es. Public suppo should
subsidise onboa ding cos s, c ea e s anda dised pipelines, and incen i ise low- ic ion euse
o me ada a ac oss sys ems.
4.2.6 Obse a o y: Eu opean = Open
When we call o a Eu opean Music Obse a o y, he adjec i e “Eu opean” should
no be ead as a cul u al il e ha limi s scope o Eu opean epe oi es. Music is, and
always has been, global. The ask o he Obse a o y is no o c ea e an insula a chi e o
“Eu opean music,” bu o build a go e nance and da a a chi ec u e oo ed in Eu opean
alues:
•Da a so e eign y — ensu ing ha c ea o s, communi ies, and ins i u ions ha e
meaning ul con ol o e how hei me ada a and wo ks a e ep esen ed.
•Subsidia i y — solu ions should be buil a he lowes e ec i e le el, allowing
na ional a chi es, collec i e managemen o ganisa ions, and indus y ac o s o
con ibu e wi hou being abso bed in o a single monoli h.
68
•Inclusi eness — mino i y epe oi es, independen a is s, and small ma ke s mus
be equally isible alongside he global ca alogues o mul ina ional pla o ms. Ou
Finno-Ug ic case s udies show how agile me ada a can be epai ed wi hou e asing
communi y pe spec i es — a model ha mus be embedded a Obse a o y scale6.
This is why we chose he name Open Music Obse a o y (OMO). E en i he policy
amewo k ul ima ely labels i he “Eu opean Music Obse a o y,” he essen ial p inci-
ple mus emain openness — o in as uc u e, o go e nance, and o pa icipa ion. The
Obse a o y should be a ede a ed, open knowledge space, no a cen alised da abase.
Eu ope has an oppo uni y o ake a s ep ha esona es beyond i s bo de s. The U.S.
Music Indus y Licensing Collec i e (MILC) demons a ed how a single ini ia i e could
se s anda ds and ipple globally. An Open Music Obse a o y, g ounded in Eu opean
go e nance bu open o he wo ld, could play a simila ole — aligning so e eign y wi h
in e ope abili y, and showing how collec i e da a a chi ec u es can p o ide gua d ails o
AI in a uly global music ecosys em.
4.2.7 The Open Music Obse a o y as a Collec i e Gua d ail
AI will only c ea e sus ainable alue o music when go e nance, in e ope abili y, and
human capi al a e aligned.
Bu building e ec i e gua d ails o agen ic and gene a i e AI canno be done by
indi idual i ms o e en na ional ma ke s.
- A he business le el, companies lack he scale and incen i es o police AI use o
me ada a.
- A he indus y le el, coope a ion is necessa y bu o en agmen ed by compe ing
in e es s.
This is whe e he Eu opean Union can play a decisi e ole:
- Coo dina ing and aligning exis ing in es men s in Eu opeana, he Eu opean Col-
labo a i e Cloud o Cul u al He i age (ECCCH), and he new da a sha ing
spaces.
- Ancho ing hese ini ia i es in an Open Music Obse a o y (OMO) buil a ound ed-
e a ed, Wikibase-compa ible knowledge g aphs.
- Ensu ing ha me ada a epai and publica ion eed in o collec i e da a a chi ec u es ha
double as gua d ails — imp o ing a ibu ion and in e ope abili y while educing he isk
o gene a i e AI misuse.
ĹWikida a Embedding P ojec : An Open Model o AI Gua d ails
In 2024–25, Wikimedia Deu schland, in collabo a ion wi h Jina.AI and Da aS ax,
launched he Wikida a Embedding P ojec .
- I s goal is o add ec o -based seman ic sea ch o Wikida a, combining i s
6We ha e c ea ed he second ede a ed module o he Open Music Obse a o y wi h con empo a y popula
and au hen ic olk music o Eu opean Finno-Ug ic mino i ies who do no ha e a na ion s a e. (An al
e al. 2025)
69

mul ilingual knowledge g aph wi h mode n embedding models.
- This enables con ex -awa e e ie al o AI sys ems while ancho ing esul s in a
public, e i iable knowledge base.
Why i ma e s o music policy
- Shows ha gua d ails o gene a i e AI can be buil on open, communi y-
managed g aphs a he han p op ie a y black boxes.
- Demons a es how seman ic sea ch and e ie al-augmen ed gene a ion can:
- Reduce hallucina ions by g ounding ou pu s in human- e i ied da a.
- Comba misin o ma ion wi h e i iable e e ences.
- Ampli y unde ep esen ed knowledge by balancing global isibili y.
Implica ion o he Open Music Obse a o y (OMO)
- By adop ing Wikibase-compa ible knowledge g aphs and exis ing on ological
pa e ns, OMO can build simila gua d ails o music.
- This posi ions me ada a epai and publica ion no jus as echnical ixes, bu as
pa o a collec i e da a a chi ec u e ha keeps AI accoun able.
The OMO model would p o ide:
-Compass and coo dina ion a he EU le el.
-S anda ds and sha ed u ili ies h ough indus y coope a ion.
-Flexible go e nance and playbooks o o ganisa ions.
Wi h his a chi ec u e, AI becomes an in as uc u e o con inuous enewal: p olonging
legacy sys ems, un eezing ozen asse s, and suppo ing bo h he i age and new epe oi es
— while embedding gua d ails agains subs i u ion and misapp op ia ion in o he
e y da a ab ic o Eu ope’s music ecosys em.
70
5 Wha Eu ope Should Do Nex o
Music Da a & AI
Eu ope’s music ecosys em is unde p essu e. S eaming pays in mic o- oyal ies, me ada a
mis akes cos eal money, and AI h ea ens o o e whelm pla o ms wi h un acked con-
en . Bu solu ions a e wi hin each. This G een Pape se s ou a pa h o wa d, buil on
h ee pilla s: be e me ada a, sha ed da a spaces, and AI ha wo ks o e e yone. (See
Chap e 1 o he backg ound and policy con ex .)
The i s s ep is o ix me ada a a he sou ce. Righ s socie ies, pla o ms, labels,
lib a ies, and a chi es all cap u e agmen s o in o ma ion abou wo ks and eco dings.
Today his is done in pa allel, was ing e o and c ea ing e o s. Sma e pipelines, sha ed
iden i ie s, and p agma ic exchange pa e ns can make documen a ion “cap u e once, euse
many.” This is no jus a echnical issue — i ’s he ounda ion o ai oyal ies and cul u al
isibili y.
See Chap e 3 o how sha ed in as uc u es can make his possible.
The second s ep is o build ede a ed da a sha ing spaces. Ins ead o a single gian
da abase, Eu ope should connec wha al eady exis s: collec i e managemen sys ems,
he i age a chi es, and pla o m ca alogues. Each ac o s ays in con ol o i s own da a bu
ag ees o sha ed p o iles, iden i ie s, and ules. This app oach lowe s cos s, imp o es us ,
and makes c oss-bo de euse ealis ic. The Open Music Obse a o y is ou p oposal o
such a space: no a cen al eposi o y, bu a con ening laye ha makes decen alisa ion
wo k.
See Chap e 4 o how a i icial in elligence can be used o s eng hen, no weaken, his
ounda ion.
The hi d s ep is o ea AI as a sha ed u ili y. Big pla o ms al eady use AI o
documen millions o acks and o s ee a en ion. Smalle playe s canno compe e unless
Eu ope p o ides common ools: AI o econcile iden i ie s, epai legacy da ase s, en ich
me ada a in mul iple languages, and help c ea o s embed in o ma ion “ om bi h.” I
deployed in a ede a ed way, AI educes cos s and un eezes neglec ed epe oi es — while
espec ing igh s, a ibu ion, and di e si y.
Taken oge he , hese s eps close he gap be ween he igh o euse g an ed by he Open
Da a Di ec i e and he means o euse ha he music indus y ac ually needs. Eu ope
should:
• Suppo me ada a cap u e and c oss-domain iden i ie s.
71
• In es in ede a ed da a sha ing spaces like he Open Music Obse a o y.
• P o ide pooled AI se ices ha SMEs, CMOs, and a chi es can all use.
This is how we make Eu ope’s music ecosys em mo e ai , efficien , and u u e-p oo — o
c ea o s, o indus y, and o audiences alike.
72
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