Spotify has been hit with a class action lawsuit accusing the streaming giant of employing a “modern form of payola” through its Discovery Mode feature, allowing record labels to secretly promote artists instead of providing genuine personalized recommendations to users, Rolling Stone reported.

The lawsuit, filed Tuesday in a Manhattan federal court, alleges Spotify “charges listeners for the privilege of being deceived.” Discovery Mode creates a “false impression of neutral, personalized recommendations.” Financial incentives are quietly driving the algorithm instead, the report said.

According to Rolling Stone, Spotify subscriber Genevieve Capolongo and other users filed the 39-page complaint, claiming the company betrays user trust.

“Spotify exploits that trust by marketing itself

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