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, Third Edition 1207.1

1207.2

1208

1208.1

1208.2

Limitation on Exclusive Rights: Reverse Engineering

Chapter 9 permits reverse engineering of a mask work "solely for the purposes of teaching, analyzing, or evaluating the concepts or techniques embodied in the mask work or in the circuitry, logic flow, or organization of components used in the mask work." The person who performs legitimate reverse engineering can incorporate the results in an original mask work intended for distribution. 17 U.S.C. § 906(a).

Limitation on Exclusive Rights: First Sale

Purchasers of semiconductor chip products have the right to use and redistribute the chip products freely but not to reproduce the mask works embodied in the semiconductor chip product without the permission of the owner of the rights in the mask work. 17 U.S.C. § 906(b).

Ownership in Mask Works

The owner of a mask work is:

• The initial owner of the mask work, or

• The person who has obtained all of the rights in the mask work by transfer. 37 C.F.R§ 211.4(b)(2)(h).

Transfer of Ownership and Licensing of Rights in Mask Works

The owner of the exclusive rights in a mask work may transfer all of the rights or license all or fewer than all of the rights. A transfer or license must be in writing and signed by the owner of the rights or by a duly authorized agent of the owner. The exclusive rights in a mask work also can be transferred by one of the following:

• Operation of law.

• Terms of a will.

• Intestate succession. 17 U.S.C. § 903(b).

Recordation of Documents Related to Transfer and Licensing of Rights

Documents related to the transfer of ownership in all of the rights in a mask work, or the licensing of one or more of the rights in a mask work may be recorded with the U.S. Copyright Office. For information on the recordation of documents related to ownership in a mask work, see Chapter 2300, Section 2309.

Chapter 1200 : 9

12/22/2014 Chapter _00 : 9