(This note is not part of the Regulations.)
These Regulations implement Council Directive 87/54/EEC (O.J. No. L 24, 27.1.1987, p. 36) on the legal protection of topographies of semiconductor products. Topography right will subsist in such topographies where they are original and their creators are citizens or residents of member states and in certain other circumstances (reg. 3 and Schedule 1). The right consists of the exclusive right to reproduce and exploit the topographies (subject to certain exceptions) (reg. 4), and runs from creation until ten years after first commercial exploitation or fifteen years after creation (reg. 5). It is infringed by unlicensed reproduction or exploitation (subject to certain exceptions, including a limited exception for reverse engineering) (reg. 6), and civil remedies are available for infringement (reg. 7).