Karaoke (KTV) bar owners in China have seemingly boycotted a new national royalty payment scheme, branding it "illegal and unreasonable."

China's National Copyright Administration (NCA) on November 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.

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.

In China's southern city of Guangzhou, the Guangzhou Cultural and Entertainment Industry Association said the royalty collection agent had no government approval and the method of paying royalties according to the number of KTV rooms was unreasonable.

"As the association has no approval, it has no right to collect royalties, and a non-existent 'right' can not be transferred to the CAVA," said Huang Shiqiu, chairman of the Guangzhou-based association.

Huang also said the number of rooms in KTV was not an accurate reflection of the amount of business.

"KTV owners could be paying for songs that haven't been used under this standard," Huang said.

A copyright fee based on the popularity of songs is believed to be more reasonable.

Huang said the boycott was organized after lengthy discussion among bar owners.

Wang Huapeng, a leading staff in charge of instituting the copyright management association, said he had noticed the protests from Guangzhou.

Wang said 12 yuan per room was the ceiling, and the association was working on a detailed scheme according to local economic conditions.

He declined to comment on his association's qualifications to collect the fees, saying, "The bars can stop using our copyrighted songs if they refuse to accept the scheme."

A staff member with the NCA said KTV owners and the national association should work together on a detailed scheme.

"Different opinions, reflecting the growing number of people concerned about royalty collection, are good for copyright protection," he said.

The NCA said royalties would first be collected in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou on a trial basis. The practice will gradually extend to other cities, with the payment rate varying according to economic conditions.