China’s top television regulator says it will step up the regulation of pay for television performers to better manage and supervise the TV industry.

The National Radio and Television Administration (NRTA) said it would push for the establishment of standardised payment contracts in a unified form in the next few years, according to the China Daily newspaper.

The NRTA said malpractices, including tax evasion and payments to performers significantly higher than the normal level, would be seriously dealt with.

The plan aims at promoting fair competition in TV series production, preventing what the NRTA calls “vicious expansion of capital”, and encouraging healthy interactions between capital and the development of the industry.