Intellectual Property Protection of Graphical User Interface

It is well recognised fact that GUI has become an emerging area for countries to contribute to the economy by investing in the technology driven smart devices and its protection as an intellectual property. In the recent years, there can be seen an incredible growth in the use of GUI incorporated devices and so in the legal battles. GUI can be protected under Copyright, Trade Dress, Patents and Design Rights under different jurisdiction. Overlapping of protection is not the issue as each IP is independent in its nature and has different eligibility criteria. The paper has also dealt with copyright protection of GUI but basically focused on claim of industrial design rights for the protection of aesthetic properties of GUI in developed and developing nation like United States and India by analysing the substantive and procedural procedures. India being a developing nation is still reluctant to protect GUI under India Designs Act, 2000 because the nature of GUI does not establish the eligibility criteria required for acquiring design rights. The paper also suggests indicative problems in grant of protection of GUI in India and suggests changes to make the legislation more flexible and broader in scope for such kind of application. The legal situation is unsettling and creating lacunas in the area of protection of interfaces that is promoting the economical and technological texture of every nations of the world.