Karaoke bar owners (KTV) in China are apparently boycotting a new national royalty payment scheme, claiming it is "illegal and unreasonable".China's National Copyright Administration (NCA) on Nov. 9 unveiled a scheme by which karaoke bars have to pay 12 yuan (1.5 U.S. dollars) a day in royalties to music artists for each room.
However, Huang Shiqiu, chairman of the Guangzhou Cultural and Entertainment Industry Association, said the number of rooms in A KTV was not an accurate reflection of the amount of business and that a copyright fee based on the popularity of songs is believed to be more reasonable.
Xinhua reports the NCA said copyright owners had designated an association for the collective management of audio and video copyrights to glean royalties on their behalf. However, as it is awaiting official approval by the government, the China Audio and Video Association (CAVA) has been designated as an interim agent to collect royalties.
