Spotify Plans to Combat Hate Speech With Kinzen Purchase

Spotify has acquired Kinzen, an Irish content moderation company, the streaming audio platform announced Wednesday (Oct. 5).

“Kinzen’s advanced technology and deep expertise will help us more effectively deliver a safe, enjoyable experience on our platform around the world,” Spotify said in a news release.

The terms of the deal were not disclosed. The companies have worked together since 2020, Spotify added in the release, noting that Kinzen’s technology is particularly suited to the podcasting and audio formats Spotify provides.

The Dublin-based company uses a combination of machine learning and human expertise —along with analysis from local academics and journalists — to analyze potential harmful content and hate speech in several languages and countries, the release stated.

“We’ve long had an impactful and collaborative partnership with Kinzen and its exceptional team,” said Spotify Global Head of Public Affairs Dustee Jenkins in the release. “Now, working together as one, we’ll be able to even further improve our ability to detect and address harmful content, and importantly, in a way that better considers local context.”

Because of the complexity of analyzing audio content in hundreds of languages and dialects, as well as the difficulty of effectively evaluating the nuance and intent of that content, Spotify said in the release its purchase of Kinzen will help the company better understand the abuse landscape and identify emerging threats on the platform.

The news came one day after the European Council approved legislation aiming to ensure a safer and more transparent online environment with more accountability and protection.

Read more: Europe Stamps Digital Services Act With Final Approval

The Digital Services Act (DSA), coupled with the Digital Markets Act (DMA), requires transparency from technology platforms as well as accountability in their role as disseminators of content. Both acts were approved by the European Parliament in July. The DSA includes rules for content and marketplace moderation to make it easier to remove illegal content, services or products while also boosting accountability around removal decisions.

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