Three differences set this right apart. First, how the right arises: an exclusive right in a layout design comes into existence only on registration, unlike copyright, which arises automatically on creation. Second, how it is examined: registration involves no substantive examination of originality. Third, what is protected: the right covers the three-dimensional configuration of two or more elements, at least one of which is active, together with some or all of the interconnections in an integrated circuit, or such a configuration prepared for the manufacture of an integrated circuit. An invention patent, by contrast, protects a technical solution.
Protection lasts 10 years, running from whichever is earlier: the date of the registration application, or the date the design was first commercially exploited anywhere in the world. Whether or not it is registered or commercially exploited, a layout design ceases to be protected 15 years after its creation.
