Research On Books Remuneration System Currently Implemented In China

Since the founding of new China, authors’ copyrights and remuneration have been admitted. However, the system of remuneration has gone through changes due to the unstable political situation. More seriously, it has been completely destroyed during the Cultural Revolution. The system of remuneration functions properly when the political situation is stable, but it is undermined in turbulent times, resulting the underestimation of the importance of authors. The reform and opening-up policy leads to the re-establishment of the system, and the adjustment has been made more than once. With the rapid development of market economy, the remuneration issues has become increasingly prominent. The system of remuneration currently in effect has been unreasonable:it is incompatible with economic development and authors gain low incomes. The system unchanged for more than a decade has seriously lagged behind the rate of economic growth. The newly revised system given by NCAC in 2014 is still full of loopholes:the low remuneration; the low royalties tax threshold and slight practical significance. In the publishing, there also exists the situation in which the author may feel cheated:delayed payment and deliberate concealment about the number of books in print. Under the circumstance of market economy, the government looses up restrictions on the system of publication and remuneration, the standard of remuneration becoming a reference in the economic-oriented society. The income authors can get depends on the sales in market, with a contract previously signed. The standard of remuneration tends to become polarized and out of balance. Ordinary authors gain low incomes and cannot make a living solely by being professional writers while famous authors could earn a lot of money only buy reputation. Despite the fact that the tax system is in line with the law of market economy, the innate value of books is ignored sometimes.The existing remuneration system causes many negative issues. Firstly, the generally lower standard of royalties and universal low-income can not guarantee that author get reasonable income materially. Besides, they cannot feel respected spiritually. They suffer a double blow in both mental level and physical level. Ordinary writers gain low income and live a difficult life, with the loss of sense of achievement as men of letters, as well as the loss of sense of values and acceptance. Secondly, some writers attempt to earn a living or become rich through writing, which makes them blindly cater to the demand of market. The commercialization of writing becomes common practice, which not only brings about disorderly competition, but also deprived of the author’s creativity and independence. The standpoint of value as intellectuals and the humanistic spirit has lost in the crisis where the activity of writing becomes tool for making money. The ideological content of books has been eroded, the quality of books deteriorating. The strike on enthusiasm of authors out of low remuneration and crudely made works owing to commercialization of writing are the root reasons for the lack of books which are original and high-quality. The current level of innovation of the publishing industry is low. Although the total number of books increases year by year, the varieties of books contracts. Homogeneity of books is serious because of repeat topics and following the trend of publishing. Domestic original works and homemade books of high-quality are hard to find. The great works which can manifest modern spirit and impress people is deficient in general.As for remuneration problems and the negative impacts it brings,the national government, the publisher and the author should attach great importance, taking measures or changing ideas to address these pressing issues. Government should strengthen macro-control to further standardize the system of remuneration, and should fundamentally reform the publishing industry. The remuneration standard should be raised on the whole, in particular, the minimum remuneration standards ought to be improved. Tax charge of royalties should be lowed and government should also significantly raise the individuate income tax cutoff threshold. The tax rate should be lowered properly, or simply give authors a tax exempt. Book publishing system of state-owned monopoly should be broken. Publishing agents are supposed to enhance the awareness of self-discipline, appealing to excellent works through alluring payment and getting rid of the situation in which publishing activity is purely driven by the interests of market. Publishers should shoulder the responsibility of censuring and selecting the merit-based works, protecting the copyright the author deserves. Authors should promote the awareness of safeguarding their remunerations and copyrights, consciously maintaining their own interests. Simultaneously, they should cultivate intensive sense of responsibility and abandon commercialized writing by contributing the works with sincere attitude.