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A regulation on the collective management of copyrighted materials, approved by the State Council, is to become effective on March 1, better protecting the interests of copyright owners throughout the nation.

Under the 48-article regulation, such rights as hiring, performance, projection, broadcasting, duplication and Internet-based information distribution - all listed in the Copyright Law and difficult for the copyright owners to effectively safeguard their rights - can be entrusted to collective management organizations for protection.

The regulation, which has been developed on the basis of drawing experience from developed countries, is also applied to foreign copyright owners that hope to enjoy protection in China, according to Liu Jie, an official of the National Copyright Administration.

Collective management on copyright means that management organizations, that are authorized by the owner, can sign agreements with the copyright users to be allowed to use products, pay for using products and other relevant activities, said the administration's Deputy-Director Yan Xiaohong, at a news conference yesterday in Beijing.

Copyright is a kind of civil right that is usually governed by owners themselves. But in many cases, methods of using literature, art and scientific works are scattered here and there. Particularly, such rights as performance and broadcast, are difficult for the copyright owners to control, said Yan.

On the other hand, it is complicated for a great number of users of the music product to get authorization from the owners for greatly using the products, said Yan.

Hence, an international practice has come into being - the copyright owner authorizes collective management organizations, on his behalf, to grant use rights to others and collect use fees for the owners.