You’ve created an amazing mobile application. The interface is sleek, the icons are unique, and the user experience is intuitive. You know you need to protect your intellectual property, but you’re confused: should you get a design patent vs copyright protection, or both?
This confusion is incredibly common among Indian app developers, startups, and businesses. Many waste money on the wrong type of protection, leaving their actual innovations vulnerable. Others skip IP protection entirely because they don’t understand the differences, only to discover competitors have copied their designs with no legal recourse.
The truth is, design patents and copyrights protect completely different things. Choosing the wrong one is like buying fire insurance when you need flood insurance—it looks like protection, but it won’t help when disaster strikes.
This comprehensive guide explains exactly what design patents and copyrights protect, how they differ, which one your application needs, and how to get the right protection in India. By the end, you’ll know precisely which IP protection strategy makes sense for your app.
What Is a Design Patent in India?
First, let’s clarify terminology. In India, what many countries call “design patents” are officially called “design registrations” under the Designs Act, 2000. They’re not patents (which protect inventions) but a separate category of intellectual property protection.
What Design Registration Protects
A design registration protects the visual appearance of a product or application interface, the way something looks, but, not how it works.
Specifically, it protects:
- Shape and configuration: The three-dimensional form of physical products or interface elements
- Pattern and ornamentation: Two-dimensional visual features, decorative elements, or surface patterns
- Combination of features: How visual elements are arranged together
For applications, design registration can protect:
- The overall visual appearance of your app’s graphical user interface (GUI)
- Unique icon designs
- Distinctive button styles and layouts
- Characteristic color schemes and visual themes
- Specific screen layouts and visual arrangements
- Distinctive animation transitions between screens
- The visual appearance of widgets and interface elements
What Design Registration Does NOT Protect
Design registration is purely visual. It doesn’t protect:
- Functionality: How your app works or operates
- Code: The programming behind the interface
- Features: The technical capabilities of your application
- Ideas or concepts: The underlying approach or method
- Content: Text, articles, or information displayed
Example: If you design a unique visual style for a shopping cart icon in your e-commerce app, design registration protects that specific visual representation. It doesn’t protect the shopping cart functionality itself—competitors can create shopping cart features, just not ones that look confusingly similar to yours.
Requirements for Design Registration in India
To be registrable under the Designs Act, 2000, your design must be:
1. New or original: Not identical to any existing registered design or published design anywhere in the world
2. Not previously published: Not disclosed publicly in India or abroad before your application filing date
3. Significantly distinguishable: Substantially different from existing designs in the same category
4. Visible in the finished product: The design must be visible when the product (or app interface) is in use
5. Applied to an article: Design must be applied to or embodied in a specific article or product
6. Not a trademark or property mark: Design protection is separate from trademark protection
7. Not scandalous or obscene: Must not violate public morality or decency
Duration of Design Protection
Design registration in India lasts for 10 years from the date of registration. It can be extended for an additional 5 years, giving you a maximum of 15 years of protection.
This is significantly shorter than copyright protection, which we’ll discuss next.
Cost of Design Registration in India
Design registration is relatively affordable:
Official government fees:
- Natural person/startup: ₹1,000 (application) + ₹2,000 (examination/publication)
- Small entity: ₹2,000 – ₹4,000
- Large entity: ₹4,000 – ₹8,000
Professional fees (patent/design attorneys):
- ₹15,000 -₹20,000 for straightforward applications
- ₹20,000-40,000 for complex applications with multiple design variations
What Is Copyright in India?
Copyright is a legal right that automatically protects original creative works from the moment they’re created and fixed in tangible form. It’s governed by the Copyright Act, 1957 in India.
What Copyright Protects
Copyright protects the expression of ideas, not the ideas themselves.
For applications, copyright automatically protects:
- Source code: All programming code (front-end, back-end, scripts)
- Software architecture: The structure and organization of code (though harder to enforce)
- Database structure: Original database designs and schemas
- Written content: All text within the app—help documentation, descriptions, instructions, error messages
- Graphics and artwork: Original images, illustrations, logos created for the app
- Audio elements: Original music, sound effects, voice recordings
- Video content: Original video tutorials, promotional videos, animations
- User interface as artistic work: The visual interface can potentially be protected as an artistic work under copyright, though this protection is narrower than design registration
- Documentation: User manuals, technical documentation, API documentation
What Copyright Does NOT Protect
Copyright has significant limitations:
Ideas and concepts: The underlying idea or concept behind your app isn’t protected by copyright, only the specific expression
Functionality and methods: How your app works, its features, or processes aren’t covered by copyright
Facts and data: Raw data, facts, or information (though original compilations can be protected)
Short phrases or slogans: These typically need trademark protection instead
Common visual elements: Standard UI elements everyone uses (basic buttons, standard icons) aren’t copyrightable
Example: Your fitness app’s unique algorithm for calculating optimal workout plans isn’t protected by copyright (you’d need a patent for that). But the specific code implementing that algorithm is protected by copyright.
Requirements for Copyright Protection
Copyright in India is automatic—you get it the moment you create original work and fix it in tangible form (write code, create graphics, etc.).
Requirements are minimal:
1. Originality: The work must originate from you and involve minimal creativity (not copied from others)
2. Fixed in tangible form: Must be expressed in some permanent form—written, recorded, coded, drawn, etc.
3. That’s it: No registration required for protection (though registration provides advantages)
Duration of Copyright Protection
Copyright protection in India lasts for:
Literary, dramatic, musical, and artistic works: Creator’s lifetime + 60 years after death
Software (treated as literary work): Same as above—creator’s lifetime + 60 years
Photographs: 60 years from the year of publication
Anonymous/pseudonymous works: 60 years from publication
Government works: 60 years from publication
This is significantly longer than design registration’s maximum 15 years.
Cost of Copyright
Copyright protection is automatic and free. You don’t need to register to have copyright.
However, voluntary copyright registration provides significant advantages:
Official government fees for copyright registration:
- ₹500 for literary works (includes software)
- ₹500 for artistic works
- ₹2,000 for sound recordings
Professional fees (if using lawyers/agents):
- ₹3,000-10,000 for straightforward registrations
- ₹10,000-25,000 for complex applications
Total typical cost: ₹3,500-25,000 if you choose to register
Infringement Test
Design Registration:
- Infringement occurs when someone uses a design substantially similar in appearance to the registered design
- Visual comparison by ordinary observer
- Focus: Would an average person think the designs look alike?
Copyright:
- Infringement occurs when someone copies or creates derivative works without permission
- Requires proof of copying (access + substantial similarity)
- Focus: Did they copy your expression, and is it substantial?
Territorial Scope
Both design registration and copyright are territorial:
- Indian design registration protects only in India
- Indian copyright protects in India + countries with reciprocal agreements (Berne Convention, etc.)
- For international protection, file in each desired country/region
Design Registration vs Copyright: Key Differences
| Aspect | Design Registration | Copyright |
|---|---|---|
| Protects | Visual appearance only | Original creative expression |
| For apps | GUI design, icons, layouts | Source code, content, graphics |
| Duration | 10 years (extendable to 15) | Lifetime + 60 years |
| Acquisition | Requires formal application | Automatic upon creation |
| Cost | ₹8,000-50,000 | Free (optional registration: ₹3,500-25,000) |
| Examination | Yes, by Patent Office | No substantive examination |
| Evidence | Certificate provides strong proof | Registration strengthens claims |
| Infringement | Substantially similar appearance | Copying or derivative works |
Which Protection Does Your App Need?
When You Need Design Registration
Get design registration if:
- Your applications’s visual interface is unique and distinctive
- The visual appearance is a key competitive advantage
- You want to prevent visual copycats
- Your app has unique icon designs
- You have a consistent visual brand across screens
Examples: Instagram’s distinctive visual style, Tinder’s iconic swipe interface, Spotify’s recognizable green theme.
When You Need Copyright
Get copyright (or register it) if:
- You want to protect your source code (automatic, but registration strengthens enforcement)
- Your app contains significant original content
- You plan to license your code or content
- You’re concerned about code theft
- Your app includes original artistic elements
Examples: Educational apps with original content, news apps with articles, game apps with stories and graphics.
When You Need BOTH
Many apps benefit from both because they protect different aspects.
Get both if:
- Your app has both distinctive visual design AND significant original content
- You want comprehensive IP protection
- You’re building a serious business
- Your app represents significant investment
Example: A meditation app with unique calming interface and distinctive icons (design registration) plus original guided meditation scripts, music, and instructional videos (copyright).
How to Get Design Registration in India
Step 1: Conduct a Design Search
Search existing designs at https://ipindiaonline.gov.in/designsearch/ to ensure yours is new and original. Look in Class 14-04 (screen displays and icons).
Step 2: Document Your Design
Prepare high-resolution screenshots showing unique design elements from multiple views. Need 4-6 views in JPEG format (under 2MB each).
Step 3: File the Application
File online at https://ipindiaservices.gov.in/DesignController
Information required:
- Applicant and creator details
- Title of design
- Class and subclass (14-04 for GUI)
- Statement of novelty
- Design representations
Step 4: Pay Fees
- Natural person/startup: ₹1,000
- Small entity: ₹2,000
- Large entity: ₹4,000
Step 5: Examination
Design Office examines your application (3-6 months). They may accept it, raise objections (you have 6 months to respond), or reject it.
Step 6: Registration
If accepted, your design is published and registered (6-12 months total). You receive a certificate with registration number.
Step 7: Maintain Registration
After 10 years, extend for 5 more years by paying renewal fees (₹2,000-8,000).
How to Get Copyright Protection in India
Automatic Protection
You already have copyright protection for all code you write, graphics you create, and content you produce. No registration needed.
Why Register Anyway?
Registration provides important benefits:
- Prima facie evidence of ownership
- Easier enforcement in disputes
- Higher statutory damages potential
- Public record deterring infringers
- Clearer licensing rights
- Shifts burden of proof to infringers
How to Register
Step 1: Create account at https://copyright.gov.in
Step 2: Choose category:
- Literary work (for source code)
- Artistic work (for graphics/UI)
- Sound recording (for music)
Step 3: Fill application with title, author details, publication information
Step 4: Submit samples:
- Software: First 10 and last 10 pages of code
- Artistic works: Images/screenshots
Step 5: Pay fees (₹500 per category)
Step 6: Wait for administrative review (6-18 months)
Step 7: Receive registration certificate
Multiple Copyrights for Apps
Many apps require multiple copyright registrations:
1. Software code: Register as literary work
2. App graphics/UI: Register as artistic works
3. Original music/sounds: Register as sound recording
4. Video content: Register as cinematograph film
5. Written content/documentation: Register as literary work
Each requires a separate application and fee, but total cost remains reasonable (₹500 per literary/artistic work).
Copyright Notice
Even without registration, use copyright notices:
© 2025 [Your Company Name]. All Rights Reserved.This notice:
- Reminds users the work is copyrighted
- Identifies the copyright owner
- Shows the year of publication
- Provides basic legal protection
Place it in:
- Your app’s About section
- Source code comments
- Documentation
- App store listings
- Your website
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Mistake 1: Thinking Copyright Protects Your App Idea Copyright protects expression, not ideas. Your fitness app concept isn’t copyrightable—your specific code and content are.
Mistake 2: Publishing Before Filing Design Registration Publishing destroys novelty. File design registration before public release or immediately upon launch.
Mistake 3: Not Registering Copyright Because It’s Automatic While automatic, unregistered copyright is much harder to enforce. Register your most important works.
Mistake 4: Registering Design Too Early Wait until design is finalized. Filing during development when design keeps changing wastes money.
Mistake 5: Thinking One Protection Is Enough Design registration doesn’t protect code. Copyright doesn’t prevent visual copying. Most successful apps need both.
Mistake 6: Not Documenting Creation Keep records of design development, code commits, and creation dates. Use version control (Git), maintain files, timestamp milestones.
The Complete IP Protection Strategy
Phase 1: Pre-Launch
- Finalize visual design completely
- File design registration before public release
- Document everything with version control
- Prepare copyright registration applications
Phase 2: Launch
- Add copyright notices (© 2025 Your Company. All Rights Reserved.)
- Publish your app
- File copyright registrations promptly
Phase 3: Post-Launch
- Monitor for infringement
- Track registration progress
- Enforce when necessary
Phase 4: Ongoing
- Register major updates and redesigns
- Renew design registrations after 10 years
- License strategically using registered IP
Conclusion
Design patent or copyright for your application in India? For most serious apps: both, with different priorities depending on your app type.
Your code is automatically protected by copyright, but registering strengthens enforcement (₹500). Your visual design has no protection until you register it under the Designs Act.
Don’t make the mistake of thinking IP protection is too expensive or complicated. The real expense is losing your competitive advantage when competitors copy your work with no legal recourse.
Understand what each protection covers, get the right protection for your app, and enforce your rights when necessary. That’s how you build lasting value.
Get Expert Help With IP Protection for Your App
Navigating design registration, copyright, and comprehensive IP protection requires specialized expertise. Don’t risk filing incorrectly or choosing the wrong strategy.
My Legal Pal connects you with experienced IP lawyers and patent attorneys who can:
✅ Assess which IP protections your app needs
✅ Conduct design searches and copyright clearance
✅ File design registration applications professionally
✅ Register copyrights for code, graphics, and content
✅ Develop comprehensive IP protection strategies
✅ Handle objections during examination
✅ Enforce your IP rights against infringers
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between design patent and copyright?
Design registration protects visual appearance—how something looks. Copyright protects original creative expression like code, content, and graphics. For apps, design registration protects unique GUI visual style, while copyright protects source code and creative elements. Design requires registration; copyright is automatic but registration strengthens enforcement.
Do I need both design patent and copyright for my app?
Most apps benefit from both because they cover different aspects. Copyright protects your code and content (automatic). Design registration protects visual interface and prevents similar-looking apps. If your app has distinctive visual design that’s part of your brand, get design registration. Total cost: ₹17,000-35,000 for comprehensive protection.
How much does design registration cost in India?
Design registration costs ₹1,000-4,000 in government fees depending on entity type, plus ₹10,000-40,000 professional fees. Total: ₹11,000-44,000. This protects your design for 10 years (extendable to 15). Worthwhile if visual design is a competitive advantage.
Is copyright registration mandatory for apps in India?
No. Copyright is automatic—your code and content are protected when created. However, voluntary registration is strongly recommended for enforcement benefits: prima facie evidence of ownership, easier disputes, statutory damages eligibility. Registration costs only ₹500 per category.
Can I get design patent for standard UI elements?
No. Design registration only protects new, original, distinctive designs. Standard UI elements everyone uses—basic buttons, generic icons, common layouts—don’t qualify. You can only register truly unique visual designs substantially different from existing ones. Copyright still protects your code even if the interface is standard.
What happens if I publish my app before filing for design registration?
Publishing before filing destroys novelty and disqualifies your design from registration. The Designs Act requires designs to be new and not previously published. Always file before public launch or app store publication. If already published, you’ve likely lost design registration opportunity, though copyright still exists automatically.
