Hello, if i make a one man company or anything can i do if i don’t use any company names that is copyrighted? And without getting sued and need to pay any money to start this one man company, maybe later on with a few more people but that is after i made my first game
Has anyone really been far even as decided to use even go want to do look more like?
- On a serious note, its hard to understand you O.P
Sorry, i wanna make a website for the games i make, but if i do make the company name like “Inner Iron Studios” I need to do something with LLC to make it copyright, i’m not sure, someone just told me that and i need to file to lawyers and stuff before i can make a website kinda like sandswept, they got copyright sandswept studios, LLC
Laws vary by nation, country, state, province, counties, even by town and districts within towns. If you are concerned about the laws, you should see a local lawyer, not ask random people who have no clue where you are or what laws you are bound to.
While Jaimi is correct I can add a couple notes. In the US, LLC stands for Limited Liability Corporation and has nothing to do with copyright. Having a corporation is useful for lawsuits so that you personally are not sued.
Alright i’m sorry for making a thread asking but i was just curious, thanks. Indeed i should have contacted a lawyer for my country but i guess i don’t know where i do that. But thanks
No need to apologize. 
One other thing worth noting, you can always get sued no matter what you do (or don’t do). Corporations simply add a layer of protection for your personal assets.
If you want to sorta secure a copyright then register a domain for your game name. The rest don’t matter now cause you still don’t have a game. Focus on developing!
Indeed, and LLC/LLP/whatever can help minimize the impact. (but they don’t 100% prevent it).
Of course the best way to reduce the chance of getting sued, is make informed/responsible decisions in the first place.
Yes, you can, so long as you keep your works honest, free from plagiarism, free from deceit, free from dishonesty. Be open and upfront about game-development problems with the person you were hired or contracted.
Don’t do like what many people on this forum does:
- misrepresent their arts portfolio - claim other people’s works as your own work,
- misrepresent their academic credentials,
- out-of-state LLC and put someone’s else house address as the address,
- being a fugitive using dozens of pre-paid credit cell phones and moving dozens of addresses.
They do themselves grave injustice by denying themselves many employment and contract opportunities.
You don’t need a company to get a copyright.
Every country has their own system, but I never seen a copyright system where you don’t get it for free.
You get the copyright on everything you create as soon as you created it, (if you’re the first creating it)
Of course if you get into trouble (someone else claiming that you steal his work), you need a way to prouve that you created it first.
So there is many system that register you an official date of creation
Of course every country has is subtle difference on how they handle copyright.
Copyright is different from trademark and different from patent.
You don’t need a company to get the copyright or register a domain name.
You don’t need a company to register a US trademark.
Most of internet are made of websites made by one man with no company.
Sure you can get sued, like in real life by only walking on the street.
And hey a company protect you, like an assurance in real life. But if you’re not doing something bad and not making money, the risk is probably pretty low.
Before you bother with a lawyer, google your local small business development center. They usually offer free services and advice.
There’s also a timely post on Gamasutra: Blogs recent news | Game Developer
But I think MurDocINC has the best advice: get your game going first. Once you have at least a proof of concept, then you can worry about setting up a business and a website to start generating pre-release interest.
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There is no such thing as COPYRIGHT a company name.
You can only TRADEMARK a company name.
Under the definition of USTPO (United States Patent and Trademark Office) :
"A trademark is a word, phrase, symbol, and/or design that identifies and distinguishes the source of the goods of one party from those of others. A service mark is a word, phrase, symbol, and/or design that identifies and distinguishes the source of a service rather than goods. The term “trademark” is often used to refer to both trademarks and service marks.
Must all marks be registered? No, but federal registration has several advantages, including a notice to the public of the registrant’s claim of ownership of the mark, a legal presumption of ownership nationwide, and the exclusive right to use the mark on or in connection with the goods or services set forth in the registration.
A patent is a limited duration property right relating to an invention, granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office in exchange for public disclosure of the invention.
A copyright protects works of authorship, such as writings, music, and works of art that have been tangibly expressed."
First thing you need to do, is talk to your local city council/trademark/company registration office of your government. Find out what is needed. Most of time, you can register a company easily as “sole trader” (with a fee), but you are 100% liable for any damage it may caused (eg. if you infringe on other company’s trademark, or even copyright material, or cause injury). Then there is LLC and Corporation (depending on country or jurisdiction) - which give you more protection against this sort of thing by shielding your personal financial asset from the company one.
But really, you need to make your game first. Worry about company later. You can register a company any time but if you don’t have a game its pointless to even register a company.
To answer the OP’s question directly: yes, you can start a one-person company. However, you can still be sued; no jurististion or company structure provides complete immunity from lawsuits. However, there are some steps you can take. (Please note that I’m going to be using US law as an example here - check with your government offices before proceeding, and note that I’m not an attorney).
First is company type. For a one-man business that does not intend to hire, you can form a sole proprietorship, or a partnership if you want more than one person involved and all members have equal say. This has the advantage of being simple to setup (you typically go to your state office and pay a filing fee) and is relatively easy to run and file taxes for, but the downside is you and your partners, if any, are personally liable for any legal action brought against you. You could, for example, lose property that you own to pay off debts that have been incurred by the business. So, in this type, there’s low overhead but high liability.
Next is a corporation. In my state there are three types of corporations, S corporations, C corporations, and LLCs. Each has advantages and disadvantages. With all of these types, you are not personally liable for action brought against the business and can only lose what you have invested in it. But, there are differences in how each type is governed.
A C corporation, is a separate legal entity owned by shareholders. You form the corporation by filing incorporation documents with the state and paying the related filing fees. The corporate structure limits each owner’s (shareholder’s) personal liability for the corporation’s business debts to the amount invested in the company by the shareholder. This type is good if you want to go to investors for funding, want your company to own real estate (I.e a small office), and flexible profit sharing among owners. However, with a C corporation, you encounter double taxation: you and the company as a whole must pay taxes on corporate income.
On the other hand, an S corporation is a standard corporation that has elected a special tax status with the IRS. The formation requirements are the same as those for C corporations: incorporation documents must be filed with the state and appropriate filing fees paid. The S corporation’s special tax status eliminates the double-taxation! Yay! A corporate income tax return is filed, but no tax is paid at the corporate level. Instead, business profits or losses “pass-through” to shareholders and are then reported on their individual tax returns. Any tax due is paid by shareholders at their individual tax rates.
The last type, an LLC, offers an alternative to corporations and partnerships by combining the corporate advantage of limited liability protection with the partnership advantage of pass-through taxation. With this tax status, the LLC’s income is not taxed at the entity level; however, the LLC typically completes a partnership return if the LLC has more than one owner. The LLC’s income or loss is passed through the LLC and reported on owners’ individual tax returns. Tax is then paid at the individual level.
You form an LLC by filing incorporation (organizational) documents with a state and paying the related filing fees. LLCs also have fewer ongoing formalities and obligations than corporations. This is good if you expect your company to run losses over the first few years.
Well technically you cant call yourself a company. A company is its very own legal entity. As far as the government is concerned a company exists as a sole entity like a “living person”. So it is required to do many things such as file and pay taxes, obtain licenses and permits, etc.
So if you were to use “Inner Iron Studios” as a name for your quasi-company without actually registering or applying to create a company it can create a huge amount of problems. First issue is priority of names for a company resides solely to those who register a business first. So say for example you create a website, call yourself Inner Iron Studios and then work on stuff for the next two years, create a game and release it. Anyone in those two years time can file an application to open a business and name their company Inner Iron Studios and you’d be shit out of luck because they registered the company first. It doesnt matter if you call yourself a “company” or use that name on your website or products, it doesnt mean squat all unless you actually legally register it. In some countries it goes as far as you have to register the company federally so no one else in another state or province can use that same name.
The second issue is if you call yourself a company (but arent an actual filed company), and collect payment either with the company name or with your own first and last name, it can land you in a lot of trouble tax wise within your country of residence. Tax agencies will run you through the ringer, and make your life miserable if you dont do things exactly by the book when it comes to this sort of stuff. This also includes the city or town you live in. Many require a permit or license for anyone claiming they are a business, and if they find out you have been calling yourself a “company” and doing things for that company, they can fine you.
As for your question about being sued. Well any person and any company can get sued. No one and nothing is immune to being sued. What registering a company does is that it separates the “company” from the individuals working for it. So for example if you register and legally open Inner Iron Studios, and someone sues the company, only the company and its assets are what is at stake, whereas if you dont register it legally, then you and all the things you own and have are at stake.