A group of 30 KTV clubs in Yunnan Province became the first in the country to acquire copyright access licenses from the China Audio and Video Collective Management Association on Sunday after paying royalty fees.

The development marks the latest step in the occasionally contentious effort to impose a royalty regime on the nation's karaoke bars.

KTV operators can secure a copyright access license after paying royalty fees to cover either a half-year or a year's operations. The fees are levied according to a complex formula based on local economic conditions.