GUIs of electronic products which are in need of control from support software are not operated independently. The support software itself can be protected by the Copyright Law, and therefore enterprises should register copyrights for these support software to ensure better protection.

As for the GUI itself, it can be protected by the Copyright Law only as a work of fine art or a compilation work at present. As stated above, if protection is sought as a compilation work, the selections or arrangements should present creativity; while if one seeks protections under laws as a work of fine art, though there is not clear line at which this requirement is met, it should seek to present a certain level of creativity consistent with those levels or protection provided to other works under the law. Whether a GUI could be protected by the Copyright Law depends on individual circumstance.

(Translated by Emily Tan)