Why is it so customary to put a picture in center of a QR Code in China?

I see more and more QR Codes like this:

More such codes can be found if I try "Google Image Search" by "QR code china" or "QR code chinese" (but not just "QR code").

For me it looks ugly:

1. It does not mix well with pixel-artish QR Code;


2. The resulting code feels like a "spoiled thing", less likely to be recognized by reader, with a weakened redundancy margin, like a scratched CD disk;

Why do them put a picture in the center?

// Suggested new tag: qr-code