Semiconductor Circuit Layout (Mask Work) Support Station
Greeting
The purpose of the registration for establishment of a circuit layout right based on “The Act Concerning the Circuit Layout of Semiconductor Integrated Circuit” is to promote the stability of the circuit layout trading by protecting the right of the creator of the circuit layout (including circuitry elements and lead wires) as a Circuit Layout Right from illegal copies and thereby to contribute to the sound development of the national industry and economy.
After the registration for establishment, a circuit layout right is created. The holder of a circuit layout right shall have the exclusive right to use the circuit layout for which registration for establishment is obtained for business purposes such as manufacturing and assignment.
The registration for establishment of a circuit layout right started in 1986, and the following chart shows the statistics on the number of application since 1986 through 2006. (as of the year-end 2006)
| |
1995 |
1996 |
1997 |
1998 |
1999 |
2000 |
2001 |
2002 |
2003 |
2004 |
2005 |
2006 |
Total |
| Application |
432 |
427 |
462 |
321 |
283 |
358 |
233 |
139 |
119 |
94 |
58 |
92 |
9,070 |
| Rejection |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
| Withdrawal |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
6 |
| Transfer |
30 |
0 |
7 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
258 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
315 |
| Inspection |
23 |
31 |
15 |
8 |
0 |
12 |
7 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
21 |
1 |
468 |
| Copy |
1 |
5 |
5 |
3 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
11 |
4 |
0 |
94 |
The following chart shows the number of application on country-by-country basis. (as of the year-end 2006)
| |
1995 |
1996 |
1997 |
1998 |
1999 |
2000 |
2001 |
2002 |
2003 |
2004 |
2005 |
2006 |
Total |
| Japan |
389 |
371 |
427 |
288 |
261 |
336 |
231 |
136 |
119 |
94 |
55 |
92 |
8,233 |
| U.S.A. |
27 |
43 |
30 |
22 |
19 |
21 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
634 |
| Netherlands |
14 |
12 |
5 |
3 |
3 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
107 |
| Germany |
2 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
48 |
| U.K. |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
16 |
| Sweden |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
9 |
| France |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
9 |
| Korea |
0 |
0 |
0 |
8 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
10 |
| Australia |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
| Switzerland |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
| Finland |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
| Total |
432 |
427 |
462 |
321 |
283 |
358 |
233 |
139 |
119 |
94 |
58 |
92 |
9,070 |
Our legal department and patent technical staff will introduce you to the system of registration for establishment of a circuit layout right. We hope this could be some help for your further understanding of this system.
Head of the Semiconductor Circuit Layout Registration S.S.
Patent and Trademark Attorney Mana OISHI
Head of the Tokyo Legal Division
Patent and Trademark Attorney Kenjiro FUJITA
OSAKA
