A COPYRIGHT watchdog is preparing to launch a landmark legal case in China's courts to warn performers and businesses against playing music for which they have not obtained rights.
And in a further attempt to extend charges on listeners, the Composers and Authors Society of Hong Kong (CASH) wants to start patrolling the Internet.
CASH yesterday revealed plans to work with its mainland counterpart, the Music Copyright Society of China, in a legal bid next year to reduce the use of unauthorised material there.
The unauthorised performance of music proliferates in concerts, karaoke bars and restaurants despite copyright laws on the mainland, according to CASH.
CASH general manager Leslie Ching Pui-wai said Chinese courts had not yet dealt with a case involving unauthorised playing of music in public.
The society has proposed a special training course on public performance copyright for Chinese judges, to be conducted under international auspices in Beijing during June.
CASH licenses restaurants, bars, shops, schools and other public places to play the music of its members and expects to earn about $108 million in royalties this year.
