1,2 million Norwegians will pay extra to release AI music

– Artificial intelligence has quickly become part of most of our everyday lives. At the same time, we see a clear skepticism towards AI-generated music. Three out of four Norwegians believe that such music should be labeled, and more than half would prefer a streaming service that only offers music created by humans, says Willy Martinsen, communications director at the copyright organization TONO.

Read the full survey here

The findings come from the Nordic Digital Music Survey 2026, conducted by YouGov on behalf of TONO, Koda and Teosto. The survey maps the use of digital music services and attitudes towards music, technology and artificial intelligence in Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland.

Believes songwriters and composers should be able to say no – and get paid

The survey clearly shows that the population supports the rights of authors in dealing with AI companies. A full 75 percent of Norwegians believe that songwriters and composers should be able to decide whether their music can be used as training data for artificial intelligence.

At the same time, 69 percent believe that songwriters and composers should be paid if AI companies use their music or voices to generate new content.

– The government is currently working on updating the Copyright Act. One of the most important questions is how strongly the legislation will protect artists and other rights holders in the face of AI companies. It is worth noting that a clear majority of Norwegians believe that politicians must ensure that AI services do not undermine the finances of those who create the music we listen to, says Martinsen.

Other findings in the survey

• The proportion of Norwegians who stream music has increased from 95 percent in 2024 to 96 percent in 2026.
• The share of paid streaming subscriptions has increased from 63 percent to 72 percent.
• Norwegians stream music an average of 3,8 hours every day.
• Even though more people than ever are paying for music streaming, free streaming services still account for 60 percent of the time Norwegians spend streaming music.
• 73 percent of Norwegian music streamers use Spotify, which is still by far the largest service.
• 62 percent use YouTube for music.
• 21 percent use TikTok for music, a fourfold increase since 2020.
• No one spends more time on TikTok for music than Norwegians. Norwegian TikTok users spend an average of 1,8 hours a day on the platform.
• 40 percent of users of free streaming services state that they would choose a paid subscription if the free services disappeared.
• Radio remains the most important source for discovering new music, but its importance is declining. The proportion who last discovered new music on the radio has fallen from 36 percent in 2015 to 15 percent in 2026.
• After radio, playlists and recommendations on streaming services are the most important source for discovering new music, with 14 percent citing this as the place they last found a new favorite song.

About the Nordic Digital Music Survey

The Nordic Digital Music Survey 2026 was conducted between June 26 and July 26, 2026. The survey covers Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland and was conducted by YouGov on behalf of TONO (Norway), Koda (Denmark) and Teosto (Finland). A total of 4,033 people participated in the survey. The sample is nationally representative in terms of gender, age and geography. The respondents are between 12 and 65 years old. The survey has previously been conducted in 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2020, 2022 and 2024.

Contact

Willy Martinsen, Communications Director, TONO, mob 909 65 254, e-mail willy.martinsen@tono.no