Protection of Integrated Circuit Layout Designs. Protection shall be granted for any original layout design incorporated in a semiconductor integrated circuit chip, however the layout design might be fixed or encoded. Protection need not be provided to layout designs that are commonplace in the integrated circuit industry at the time of their creation or to layout designs that are exclusively dictated by the functions of the integrated circuit to which they apply. Protection may be conditioned on fixation or registration. If protection is conditioned on registration of the layout design, applicants will be given at least two years from first commercial exploitation of the layout design in which to apply for registration. If deposits of identifying material or other material related to the layout design are required, applicants shall not be required to disclose confidential or proprietary information unless it is essential to allow identification of the layout design. The term of protection shall extend for at least ten years from the date of first commercial exploitation or the date of registration, if required, whichever is earlier. The owner of the layout designs must be provided the exclusive right to do or to authorize the doing of the following:
(a) reproduce the layout design;
(b) incorporate the layout design in a semiconductor integrated circuit chip; and
(c) import or distribute a semiconductor integrated circuit chip incorporating the layout design including products incorporating such chips. Limitations on the layout design owner's exclusive rights may be implemented solely through non- exclusive compulsory or non-voluntary licenses and only to remedy an adjudicated violation of competition laws or to address, only during its existence, a declared national emergency. A government may use semiconductor integrated circuit layout designs for governmental purposes on a non-exclusive basis. Compensation, commensurate with the market value for a license of the semiconductor integrated circuit layout design must be provided when the government uses a layout design for government purposes or provides for or orders the issuance of compulsory or non-voluntary licenses during a declared national emergency. Decisions to grant compulsory or non-voluntary licenses and the compensation provided shall be subject to judicial review. The following acts may be exempted from liability under the law:
(a) reproduction of a layout design for purposes of teaching, analysis, or evaluation in the course of preparation ...
