Naming your game/studio (legal issues)

[Roninator2]

However also search for alternatives - if you want a .com, see if the .org, .net, etc are already taken and go check them out.

I refrained from doing that.

My first attempt at a domain name was r2games.ca
well a few months later I discovered r2games.com
They are a big enough company that sell games (go figure), that having a similar name would be silly I would think.
I let the domain r2games.ca expire and now use my new one in a .com as it was available in almost every variant.

Is it ok to use the same name for something that is not a game?
Again, I had a name that I wanted to use as my distributor or publisher name, but when I found a company that had a similar name I sent them a message asking if they would have any issues with me using the similar name.
They immediately sent me an official notice to not use that name. So... it is always best to find a unique name.
Sometimes it is hard to find one, but sometimes you just have to make something up. (Skype, Twitter, Instagram, supercalifragilisticexpialidocous?)

 

[Shaz]

If you ask anyone if it's okay to use the same name as them, they would naturally answer 'no'. Apart from the obvious mix-up when people try to search for them and end up with you instead (potential loss of customers), there is the risk that what is on your site could be viewed negatively by them and their own reputation could be affected because people finding your site instead of theirs might think you're the same company.

Of course, you don't have to ask them, and you don't have to abide by their wishes, but that would be at your risk.

I would definitely get the .com as that's what people are used to looking for. I wouldn't bother with the .com.au or .com.us or whatever, because we are selling games globally, and having a country code as part of the URL doesn't really make sense in this context (and for me, the .com.au domain costs 2-3 times the .com price). I'd consider grabbing the .net just to prevent someone else getting it and causing confusion (same issue as first paragraph, but you're on the other side of the equation this time).

Using the same name for a game studio and something that is not a game studio? I'm divided on this, and trying to work it out myself actually. Of course, it's "okay" - nobody is going to stop you doing it, especially if nobody else uses that name for anything. But if I publish books and I publish games, would I want to use the same name for both? Not sure on that one.

 

[eluukkanen]

Just don't have "Saga" or "Edge" or "Scroll's" at the end of your studio, and you should be fine

On a serious note, an attitude "should I care" should not even apply for rpg maker games. It's like corruption really. Its so easy to happen, and no-one really notices... Yes, it happens, and more easily in smaller cases... but is smaller case corruption more better? I would deffinitely say no, and that is why taking any legal proceedings even in hobby game making (which you are going to publicly publish anyway) very seriously.

Big companies have teams focused around screwing up people with infrenging copyrights, that is why even fan games get legal notices these days.

So if I were you, I would name the studio uniquely and without worrying about any legal matters. If it is the case about having a small game which would not get that much exposure anyways: Why would you have a longer consideration about the studio name?

 

[Omar]

Being a business owner in the State of Florida here are the requirements.

If I don’t want my business to be my name I have to register as a DBA (doing business as).

There is a small fee from my state for doing so $45 and they request that I run an ad for two weeks stating I am going to use this business name. During that time if someone has an objection they can.

Once I have that paperwork done, I take it to the local city office and register my business.

A good list to see how close business names may be visit Florida's State registry.

 

[ACECORP]

What I did, and this is the way I would advise folks to do it assuming you are USA Based and plan to go full bore into the venture, is pick a name and then search on google to see if anything like it exists. If its not unique try something else. Once you get what you think you want to use, go to your state's department of state website and search for business names, as part of the business registration process. Its the part before you pay or submit. Once you confirm that the name is available, I recommend you register the business itself as either a S-Corp, C-Corp, or LLC with the state, then do the same at the federal level. The state you operate in determines which of those is the best and/or most advantageous. If you do this kind of thing often, its easy, but if its your first time honestly working with a lawyer is best to make sure you don't miss a step and you get everything set up correctly. Without an attorney you can expect the cost to be ~ $300 to $600 depending on the state. With an attorney's help it could exceed $1000. Different states have different requirements for articles of incorporation or LLC agreements so thats why an attorney is helpful the first time around. You normally have to file with dept of state in your state, and dept of state federal level, and you have to file separately to set up your business in your states dept of revenue. So there are at least 3 separate filing steps. If its your first time get a lawyer. Trust me its worth its weight in gold and once you do it once time, you don't need the lawyer if you start more businesses because its the same process.

Now if you are a 1 man show and you want to do it on the cheep, there is the Sole Proprietorship option that doesn't require you to do anything other than file a Fictitious Name with your state's department of state. For this, your tax guy can help you because its more of a tax function then a legal fiction. You still have to file three levels (dept of state - state, dept of state federal, depot of revenue - state) but your tax guy can help you the whole way.

SOME tax professionals have the expertise to help you with LLC, C-Corp, and S-Corp processes, so you might not actually need a lawyer. But its good to have someone hold your hand the first time to protect you from mistakes.

When I started my first business back in 1998 I did it as a sole proprietorship. Unless you have employees or need to pay people a certain way you can really remain an sole proprietorship. If you pay via contract you can stay a sole proprietorship. Tax guy is most helpful in completing all the sole proprietorship steps. Use a lawyer for LLC, C-Corp, or S-Corp.

Hope that helps whoever wants to know.