IP Other than Patent

Copyright 

Copyright is the exclusive right given to the owner of a copyright for a specific period. Copyright protection in Malaysia is governed by the Copyright Act 1987. There is no system of registration for copyright in Malaysia.

A work that is eligible is protected automatically upon fulfillment of the following conditions:
• sufficient effort has been expected to make the work original in character;
• the work has been written down, recorded or reduced to a material form;
• the author is qualified person or the work is made in Malaysia or the workis first published in Malaysia

What Does Copyright Protect? Works eligible for protection are;
• literary works;
• musical works;
• artistic works;
• films;
• sound recordings;
• broadcasts; and 
• derivative works

Industrial design 

An industrial design is the ornamental or aesthetic aspect of an article. The design may consist of three-dimensional features such as the shape and configuration of an article, or two-dimensional features, such as pattern and ornamentation. The design features must be applied to an article by any industrial process or means of which the features in the finished article appeal to eye. 

Registration
Filing of an industrial design should be made at the earliest possible time or before an article is disclosed to the public. Prior disclosure will destroy the novelty of the design. So extreme care should be exercised to ensure secrecy of the design. 

Confer
A registered industrial design confers the owner of a registered design the exclusive right to make, import or sell or hire out any article to which the design has been applied. Other users should obtain the consent of the rightful owner before using the design. The owner of a registered design has the right to take legal action against an infringer within 5 years from the act of infringement. 

Period of protection
A registered industrial design is given an initial protection period of 5 years from the date of filing and is extendable for a further four consecutive terms of 5 years each. The maximum protection period is 25 years.

Protection
An industrial design registered in Malaysia is only protected in Malaysia . In order to have your designs protected in other countries, applications for registration will have to be filed within six month from the earliest date when it was first filed in any of the Paris Convention member countries.

Layout-Design Of An Integrated Circuit

What Is A Layout-Design Of An Integrated Circuit?
A layout-design of an integrated circuit is the three-dimensional disposition of the elements of an integrated circuit and some or all of the interconnections of the integrated circuit or such three-dimensional disposition prepared for an integrated circuit intended for manufacture.

The law that protects layout-designs of  integrated circuits is the Layout-designs of Integrated Circuits Act 2000

How Is Layout-Design Protected?
A layout-design is eligible for protection automatically upon fulfillment of the following conditions:

It is original, i.e. the result of its creator's own intellectual effort and not commonplace among creators and manufacturers of integrated circuit;
It has been fixed in a material form or incorporated into an integrated circuit;
The right holder of the layout-design is a qualified person.


Who Is The Right Holder Of Layout-Design?
The creator;
- The person who commission if the layout-design is created in pursuance of a commission;
- The employer if the layout-design is created by an employee in the course of his employment.

What Are The Rights Of A Right Holder?
A right holder of a protected layout-design has the following rights:
- Reproduce and to authorize the reproduction of his protected layout-design
- To commercially exploit and to authorize the commercial exploitation of :
   - His protected layout-design;
   - An integrated circuit in which the layout-design is incorporated; or
   - An article that contains an integrated circuit in which the layout-design is incorporated.

Trademark 

A trademark is a sign which distinguishes the goods and services of one trader from those of another. A mark includes words, logos, pictures, names, letters, numbers or a combination of these.

A trademark is used as a marketing tool to enable customers in recognizing the product of a particular trader.

- source MyiPO

New Plant Variety

Plant Breeders' Rights also called Plant Variety Protection (PVP), is a form of Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs). It is an exclusive right granted to breeders of new varieties to exploit their varieties and has features that are in common with patents for industrial inventions. Both forms of protection grant to their holders a form of exclusive right to pursue the creative and innovative activity.

PVP may also be compared with copyright, as PVP enables the reproduction (copying) of protected plant varieties to be constrained by the owner of the protected variety. PVP is an independent sui generis form of protection tailored for the purpose of the protection of new plant varieties. It has certain features that are common with other IPRs but have, at the same time, fundamental differences.

Since the early 19th century, in agriculture and forestry, the introduction of new varieties is an essential component to maintain and sustain good and high crop productivity and quality. New varieties are constantly being bred for higher yields, for better agronomic traits like a taste, for resistance against pest or diseases, for tolerance to saline or drought conditions etc.

The Malaysian government has realized the importance of PVP for the development of the country. Malaysia, a member of World Trade Organization (WTO) and a signatory to the TRIPS Agreement, which under Article 27.3 (b), stipulates that member countries shall provide for the protection of plant varieties by a patent or by an effective sui generis system or by any combination thereof. As such, Malaysia is able to fulfill its obligation of Article 27.3 (b) for the TRIPS Agreement with the introduction of the PVP legislation. Therefore, the responsibility in implementing the Protection of New Plant Variety (PNPV) Act 2004 has been entrusted to the DOA Malaysia.

With the PVP legislation, growers are in a better position to have access to new and improved varieties for commercial growing. Temperate flower growers in Malaysia, for example, are facing problem in getting new varieties from Netherlands and other countries which breed these varieties. The extension of rights to harvested material further complicates the issue.

The objectives of the Act are:

To provide for the protection of the rights of breeders of new plant varieties, and the recognition and protection of contribution made by farmers, local communities and indigenous people towards the creation of new plant varieties;
To encourage investment in and development of the breeding of new plant varieties in both public and private sectors; and
To provide for related matters.

The PNPV Act is a pan-Malaysian by nature, which is applicable to all plants but excludes microorganisms. IPR protection of new variety is granted via a registration process based on validation of plant characteristics that distinguishes it from other varieties.

Under this PNPV Act, the scope of a breeder's right, in respect of the registered plant variety for which the right is granted, have the right to carry out all or any of the following acts on a commercial basis:

Producing or reproducing;
Conditioning for the purpose of propagation;
Offering for sale;
Marketing, inclusive of selling;
Exporting;
Importing; and
Stocking the material for the purposes mentioned in 1 to 6.

Hence, unauthorized conduct of such acts will constitute an infringement under the PNPV law.

However, there is a limitation to breeder's right under this Act. The breeder's right shall not extend to:

Any act done privately on a non-commercial basis;
Any act done for an experimental purpose;
Any act done for the purpose of breeding other plant varieties;
Any act of propagation by small farmers using harvested material of the registered plant variety planted on their own holdings;
Any exchange of reasonable amount of propagating materials among small farmers; and
The sale of farm-saved seeds in situations where a small farmer cannot make use of the farm-saved seeds on his own holding due to natural disaster or emergency or any other factor beyond the control of the small farmer, if the amount sold is not more than what is required in his own holding.
An application for the registration of new plant variety and grant of breeder's right shall only be made by breeder, the employer of the breeder, the successor in title of the breeder, a farmer or group of farmers, local community or indigenous people who have carried out the functions of a breeder and any government or statutory body which has carried out the functions of a breeder. However, if the applicant's ordinary residence or principal place of business is outside Malaysia or if the applicant is a group of farmers, the applicant should appoint an agent who is a resident or who has a registered office in Malaysia. But, if the applicant is a local community or an indigenous people, the authority representing the local community or indigenous people shall be the agent

Conditions for registration of new plant variety and grant of breeder's right shall be registered as a new plant variety if the plant variety is new, distinct, uniform and stable. Notwithstanding, where a plant variety is bred, or discovered and developed by farmers, local community or indigenous people, the plant may be registered as a new plant variety and granted a breeder's right if the plant variety is new, distinct and identifiable.

Therefore, for the purposes stated above, a plant variety is new if on the filing date of application for registration and grant of a breeder's right the propagating or harvested material has not been sold or otherwise disposed off on a commercial basis by or with the consent of the breeder:

Within Malaysia, earlier than one year before the filing date of the application for registration of a new plant variety and grant of a breeder's right; and
In other countries, are earlier than six years in respect of trees and vines and earlier than four years in respect of other plant varieties.
Apart from the Procedure and Conditions for Application of Registration of New Plant Variety and Grant of Breeder's Right, Rights, Limitations and Duties of a Holder, the PNPV Act 2004 also include:

Establishment and management of the Malaysian Plant Varieties Board to govern the overall granting of breeder's rights;
Issuance of Compulsory Licence;
Invalidation, Revocation, Surrender and Assignment or Transmission of right;
Setting up of an Appeal Board to hear appeals from aggrieved parties;
Infringement and process for claims for damages;
Offenses and penalties; and
Enforcement and investigations.

More information, Agriculture Department website

Updated:: 03/03/2021 [asrizam]