GUI Registration Under Designs Law In India Is Hoping For Clarity Over Registrability

With the rising trend for Protecting intellectual property (IP), creative works are demanding a clear and unambiguous set of laws to protect their rights and ownership.

Graphical User Interface (GUI) refers to icons, windows, and/or menus that provide a visual interface for interacting with electronic devices. In India, there has been considerable dispute about the registrability of GUIs under industrial design law. While the Designs Act of 2002 accepted GUI protection, the Indian Patents Office has been hesitant to register GUIs.

GUIs have always been under debate under the Indian Designs laws, regarding their registrability. However, in a recent judgement, in the matter of?UST Global (Singapore) PTE Ltd. vs. The Controller of Patents and Designs and Anr., the Calcutta High Court, under special jurisdiction, gave a positive hope relevant to GUI registrability under the existing Designs Laws in India.

A significant amendment was brought as Designs Rule 2008; which allowed Microsoft to register the GUI designs, but Amazon's application about a "Graphic user interface for providing supplemental information of a digital work to a display screen" was rejected design protection by the Indian Patent Office.

The reason showed for the refusal was that the GUIs do not privilege themselves as designs under Sec. 2(a) and (d) of the Designs Act. The COntroller objected based on the reason that the GUI was in operation only when the system is switched on and thus does not qualify under the condition of "consistent eye appeal". Therefore, GUI does not qualify as an article of manufacture as it is not physically accessible, neither qualifying under the ambit of the Designs Act.

The High Court held that the reasons presented by the controller in favour of the rejection are incorrect and instructed for a fresh consideration within three months of passing the order.?

This order is a new hope for bringing more clarity to the registrability of GUIs under industrial designs law in India.