i incorporated company. now my question is, should i open my bank account and merchant account under my inc? or under my .com?

Your company (inc) name of course :rolleyes:

maybe i should rephrase. i have multiple .coms, should i seperate them, or have them under one account

You can have your main INC. company and then setup a D.B.A. (Doing Business As) for your .com sites.


There is (atleast where I live) an additional fee per D.B.A. & this is over and above the original buz license I got for my main INC company name.

- Kevin

so would u suggest i do this? or is it not wortht he money? waht were the fees?

also, should the copyright be under the inc? or the .com

Originally posted by rlynch
so would u suggest i do this? or is it not wortht he money? waht were the fees?

I have a generic main corp. name & I also use the DBA for my side biz (internet related). The cost is about the same as standard buisness license. But you'll need to contact you local gov't to see what's involved and find out the cost.

Good Luck!!

- Kevin

Put the copyright under the corporation's name. It is a legal entity.

Filing a DBA or assumed name statement is typically done at the county clerk's office. Here in Texas it's less than $10.

I don't think you need a DBA if you're incorporated unless you want to keep the general public from knowing who runs the site without a little research.

Of course, if you set up separate bank accounts for some reason you'll incur additional fees from the bank.

im in tx too. thanks for the info.

ill probly just keep it simple and do business under the inc. i could always form seperate accounts later on if i wished. would this be difficult to do?

I'm at the point of incorporating, too. I have had a PC repair service since 97 under a DBA, but now that I am entering the webhosting market, the PC repair name doesn't fit well. I am trying to decide whether to incorporate under a more generic name and have individual DBAs, or consider the PC repair service as a "brand". I'm not positive, but I believe I would have to represent myself with the corporate name, so that may not fly. Anyone know the rules as they exist in New York, USA?

A .com is nothing... it's a stage name. It has no legal standing.

An INC is a legal entity, just like you are, it can sign contracts, be sued, make money and pay taxes.

PLEASE take my advise and discuss all these questions with a competant attorney in your state before you jump into an incorporation. It's one of those things that needs to be done right the first time.

Aaron

Just get a DBA name of your .com for your business. I have an LLC, but my LLC also has DBAs representing the names of my respective busines units. As for has you organize your bank accounts, that is up to you, but I hope this clears up a few things for you.

Originally posted by rlynch
im in tx too. thanks for the info.

ill probly just keep it simple and do business under the inc. i could always form seperate accounts later on if i wished. would this be difficult to do?

I believe I would have to represent myself with the corporate name

You would be an officer but the name of the corporation would not have to include your name. In fact, you can't trademark business name that is actually a surname.

once a name is incorporated, i assume another company can not register that name. however, does this apply to the state only? or is it national?

for example, can there be an ABC inc in tx and an ABC inc in NY?

They'll check to see if there is not another corporation with that name in the same state. But even within the same state there may be a business that has the same name that is not incorporated. Not a problem if the businesses are in unrelated fields. But if they are, the one with "first use" generally retains the right in any dispute.

Originally posted by adland II
Yes. Even in the same state. Not a problem if businesses are in unrelated fields. But if they are, the one with "first use" generally retains the right in any dispute.

are u sure? even in the same state? tahts shocking

in regards to billing, all payments should be made out to whoever the bank accounts name is in, right? and not necessarily the inc.

adland,

do u know the process for changing the perment address of my inc?

is a PO Box as a permenent address "bad" or unwise?

From a book on trademarks that I have:

As we have seen, there are two very different contexts in which a business's name may be used:

- the formal name of the business for purposes of bank accounts, creditors and potential lawsuits (trade name)

- the name that the business uses to market its goods and services (trademark or service mark)



Simply put, if the corporate name you have registered was already in use or federally registered as a trademark or service mark, you will have to limit your use of the corporate name to your checkbook and bank accoutn. The minute yout ry to use the name in connection with markteting your goods and services, you risk infringing the existing trademark or service mark.

There are several key factors in determining whether your coporate name is likely to run afoul of an existing mark:

- Was the same or similar name previously in use as a mark by another business prior to your actual use of the name? If it was, then tany actual conflict in the marketplace will probably be resolved in favor of the previous user.

- Was the same or similar name placed on the federal tradmeark register as a mark prior to your first use? If so, you will be considered a deliberate trademark infringer to the extent the two names come into actual conflict.

You should search http://www.uspto.gov to see if there is an existing trademark.

For an INC in Texas:·Article 2—Registered Agent and Registered Office: The registered agent can be either an individual resident of the state (Option B) or a Texas corporation or foreign corporation with a certificate of authority to transact business in Texas (Option A). The corporation however may not be designated to serve as its own registered agent. A post office box is not sufficient as a registered office address unless the registered office is located in a town with a population of less than 5,000.

You'll find Texas forms here:

http://www.sos.state.tx.us/corp/business.shtml


In the FAQs there is this:

The registered office must be a physical address where the registered agent may be located during business hours. It cannot be a post office box or a lock box that is part of a commercial mail/message service unless that commercial enterprise is designated to be the registered agent. However, the registered office may be a post office box if the population of the city in which the registered office is located is less than 5,000.

wow. thanks for the info. much appreciated.

as of now, the permenant address is my living address. i would really like to change this for privacy and business reasons. what do u suggest?

keep my home address as my permanent and use a PO Box for my mailing address?

do i have any other options? besides renting out some office space.

You should create a main bank account under your name of Corporation, and contact your lawyer in seeing how you can bind your .com's with your corporation for full protection. There is a way to do it, I did it for a friend. Just can't fully remember.