A roundup of today’s stories in the Chinese media.
It has been confirmed that karaoke or KTV clubs will be forced to pay music copyright fees in China. The rate is likely to be RMB 0.17 per song. The fee structure has been reported to the National Copyright Administration, but it is not clear when the fees will start to be charged, nor will there be a public hearing about the matter, according to the The Beijing News.
Southern Weekend ran “a bold imagination” as their top headline. The article talks about an extraordinary plan to transport water from southwestern China to arid areas elsewhere in the country, including Beijing, Tibet and Xinjiang.
Today there were two entertainment stories about the famous pop song lyric writer Fang Wenshan and singer Chen Qizhen. Today’s entertainment media wrote about the Fang’s rise to prominence after his cooperation with megastar Jay Chou. Chen Qizhen was in the news because her recently published book got to number one in Taiwan’s popular book market, no mean feat for a pop singer.
Historian Yi Zhongtian appeared on the cover of Sanlian Life Weekly. His best selling history books have made him into a popular celebrity.
The China Daily had a big story about the launch of an earthquake-monitoring satellite, a key next step to help predict tremors using space technology.
Finally, the Sina reported on the aftermath of typhoon Kaemi, which will stop affecting weather in China from tonight.