SHANGHAI, Dec. 18 (Xinhua) -- A copyright services institution for film and television production companies was founded in Shanghai on Tuesday, a new step for the city to strengthen copyright protection and crack down on copyright infringement.

The institution cooperates with leading law firms, banks, universities and tech companies to provide copyright-related services for film and television makers in Shanghai, including copyright valuation and development, financing, legal protection and infringement monitoring as well as personnel training.

Chinese film director Zhang Jianya said he was glad to see "systematic development in copyright protection" for Chinese films and televisions.

"The institution will enhance the competitiveness of Chinese film and television," said Zhang.

Small and medium-sized film and television companies lacking legal support are expected to benefit from the newly established institution.

"Many small film production companies in China neglect the importance of copyright protection and a majority of them don't even hire staff responsible for legal affairs," said Li Xiangnong with the Shanghai Bar Association.

"Yet a copyright dispute may hinder their production and distribution, resulting in losses for copyright holders," Li added.

China has stepped up efforts on the protection of intellectual property rights (IPRs) in recent years.

In November, the country issued a guideline on IPR protection, calling for speeding up the introduction of a punitive compensation system for infringements of patents and copyrights, and strengthening the protection of trade secrets, confidential business information and their source codes.