Regulations on the Protection of Layout-Designs of Integrated Circuits
Author:sipoIssuing Date:2008-01-24 13:34:38Source:sipo
(2) commercially exploiting a protected layout-design, an integrated circuit incorporating a protected layout-design, or an article incorporating such an integrated circuit.
Article 8. The exclusive right of layout-design is acquired after its being registered with the intellectual property administration department of the State Council.
Any unregistered layout-design shall not be protected under these Regulations.
Article 9. The exclusive right of layout-design shall belong to its creator, except as otherwise prescribed in these Regulations.
Where a layout-design is created according to the will and under the charge of a legal person or other organization, which shall bear responsibility for such layout-design, that legal person or other organization shall be the creator.
Where a layout-design is created by a natural person, that person shall be the creator.
Article 10. Where a layout-design is created jointly by two or more natural persons, legal persons or other organizations, the ownership of the exclusive right shall be agreed upon by the joint creators; in the absence of such an agreement or where the agreement is not clear, the exclusive right shall be owned jointly by the creators.
Article 11. Where a layout-design is created in execution of a commission, the ownership of the exclusive right shall be agreed upon by the person having commissioned and the person being commissioned; in the absence of such an agreement or where the agreement is not clear, the exclusive right shall be owned by the person being commissioned.
Article 12. The term of protection of the exclusive right of layout-design shall be 10 years counted from the date of filing an application for registration or from the date on which it was first commercially exploited anywhere in the world, whichever expires earlier. However, no matter whether it has been registered or commercially exploited, a layout-design shall no longer be protected under these Regulations 15 years after the date of the completion of its creation.
Article 13. Where the exclusive right of layout-design belongs to a natural person, the exclusive right shall, after the death of the natural person and within the term of protection as prescribed in these Regulations, be transferred in accordance with the provisions of the Succession Law.
Where the exclusive right of a layout-design belongs to a legal person or other organization, the exclusive right shall, after the legal person or other organization is reorganized or ceases to exist and within the term of protection as prescribed in these Regulations, be owned by the legal person or other organization which succeeds to its rights and obligations; where there is no such legal person or other organization to succeed to its rights and obligations, the layout-design shall enter into the public domain.
Chapter III Registration of Layout-design
Article 14. The intellectual property administration department of the State Council is responsible for the registration of layout-design and receives applications for layout-design registration.
Article 15. Where a layout-design for which registration is applied relates to the security or other vital interests of the State and is required to be kept secret, the application shall be handled in accordance with the relevant provisions of the State.
Article 16. Where an application for registration of layout-design is filed, the following shall be submitted:
(1) an application form for registration of layout-design;
(2) a copy or drawing of the layout-design;
(3) where the layout-design has been put into commercial exploitation, a sample of that integrated circuit incorporating the layout-design;
(4) other materials required by the intellectual property administration department of the State Council.
Article 17. Any layout-design, if no application for its registration has been filed with the intellectual property administration department of the State Council within two years from the date on which it was first commercially exploited anywhere in the world, shall no longer be registered by the intellectual property administration department of the State Council.