Over the past days I have changed quite a bit about how downloads work here: some networks now have to sign in, the guest allowance got smaller, and there is a new tier system where you can apply for a bigger allowance — for free. Adding hurdles to a free music library is the opposite of what I want to do, so you deserve an honest explanation instead of a silent config change.
What was actually happening
Nothing glamorous. No genius hackers. Two very boring patterns:
1. Automated grabbing. Scripts walking through the catalogue, pulling file after file, never listening to a single second of any of it. Rotating addresses, mostly out of hosting networks and commercial proxies, so no single address ever looks suspicious on its own.
2. Quota farming by hand. Guest allowance used up → create a throwaway account with a free mail address → take the next allowance → repeat. On one afternoon in July, 19 fresh accounts showed up, almost all of them stopping at exactly the daily limit, most of them with barely a play in between. Whoever does this is a real human being, patiently clicking - which is oddly more impressive than a bot, and just as unsustainable for me.
The concentration is the part that finally convinced me. In the last four weeks, a single country produced over a thousand downloads from just 113 different addresses. In the same period, the US needed 888 addresses for 2,888 downloads and Germany 586 for 1,907 - that is what an actual audience looks like: a lot of people taking two or three tracks each. Nine tracks per address is not an audience, it is a pipeline.
And I honestly do not know where those files end up. That is a big part of the problem: I built this library so people can use the music in their videos, films, podcasts and games - not so it can be mirrored, re-uploaded, resold or swallowed by some dataset.
I want to be clear about one thing, because it matters: this is about behaviour and networks, not about people or nationalities. The bulk of this traffic currently comes out of China and a handful of other Asian networks, and yes, I am naming that openly. But the ordinary person in Shanghai looking for background music for their vlog is not the problem - they are the collateral damage. Which is exactly why there is a way back in, see below.
What changed
Datacenter, VPN and proxy networks now need an account. If your connection leaves through a hosting provider or a commercial VPN, you will be asked to sign in before you can download. Not because VPN users are criminals - I use one myself - but because that is where almost all of the automated traffic comes from.
A few regions need an account too. At the moment that affects China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, Japan, Vietnam and Russia. Browsing, searching, streaming, the radio and all the creator tools stay open everywhere - this only applies to downloading, and a free account lifts it. It is a blunt instrument and I am not proud of it; I would very much like to shorten that list again.
A smaller guest allowance, and tiers for accounts. Guests can download 4 tracks per day. An account on its own does not automatically give you more - a new account starts as Starter with the same 4. The account is not the reward, it is just the difference between "someone" and "you". On top of that:
- Bronze - 10 downloads per day
- Silver - 15
- Gold - 20
- Platinum - 25
- Diamond - 30
- Obsidian - 60
All of these are free. There is no paid tier, no subscription, no "premium", and there will not be one.
How to get a bigger allowance
You will find it in the menu under "Request more downloads" → https://ende.app/en/user/upgrade
- Choose the allowance you actually need.
- Add a link to your channel or website - wherever your work can be seen.
- Publish the short verification code shown on that page: in your channel bio, in a post, or anywhere publicly visible on your site. That proves the channel is really yours - otherwise anyone could point at someone else's profile.
- Tell me in a few sentences what you are making.
I read every single request myself and answer by email. Requests with a dead link, an empty page or "I need more downloads" as the reason get rejected - not to be difficult, but because that is precisely what the farming accounts write. An honest request with a working link gets approved, no matter which country it comes from.
What has not changed
- Every track is still free, under CC BY 4.0 with attribution - https://ende.app/standard-license
- No paywall, no subscription, no ads-to-unlock, no registration wall for listening.
- Nothing about the credit requirements changed.
- Playing, playlists, favourites, radio and the creator tools are untouched and unlimited.
Sorry - and thank you
If you are one of the many people who use this music properly, you just walked into measures that were aimed at someone else. I am sorry about that. The good news is that the way out is a two-minute request that can leave you with a larger allowance than you ever had before.
And if you are reading this from one of the gated regions and you are a real person making real things: please do apply. Tell me about your project, show me your channel — I would genuinely rather raise your limit than block your country.
The bots are not going to read this post. You did. Thanks for that.
