Do I need a company to sell a game?

[CraigsCraig]

Hello! Together with a friend we decided to make a game and sell it on Steam for example. But do we need a legit company to be able to sell it?

 

[sizzling]

Interesting question and I don’t know the answer but things that come to mind are;

Requirements in your country for recording income and possible tax benefits with one option over the other.

Liability. Should someone decide to take legal action against the developers trading as a company probably gives you better protection but again country specific.

Steam may impose their own requirements to protect themselves.

 

[CraigsCraig]

OK thank you mate gonna have that in mind!

 

[Solandri]

If you were doing this alone and didn't care about the liability protection of a company, then I'd say you could do it in your name (called a sole proprietorship in the U.S.).

But since you're doing it with a friend, you most definitely want a company or some sort of partnership agreement. That will formally and legally spell out how you and your friend will work together - how you'll make decisions, how the money will be split, etc. I've heard far, far too many horror stories about people starting an informal business with a friend, and when the money starts rolling in or trouble brews, the "friend" screws them over. I'd worry about that more than any requirements Steam has.

For more specific advice, you'll need to tell us which country you're in. And in the U.S. also which state (though that's less important). A tech forum probably isn't the best place for business advice, but I'll help if I can. Starting a business is no small undertaking, and you may not be happy to find out that the majority of your time is spent running the business (government forms and filings, accounting, business contracts, marketing, etc) than actually doing the thing you started the business to do. The common pattern seems to be that the first company you start fails miserably because you were completely unprepared for all the additional tasks that need doing to run a business. But the second company you start usually turns out OK because now you know.

 

[CraigsCraig]

Thank you for the reply! I am in the country Bulgaria. Where can I ask for details about this legal information if you know?

 

[rugupiruvu]

Hi bro, have you found out some information about your case? You know, I would like to invest some money in a program. I found on the internet the guys who are making it but they need some more sponsor. So I thought that nowadays online programs would bring me money. I even found a blog <<deleted by moderator>> where I read everything that I have had to know about investment. Now I need to know only the official concrete information. If you know something more please share. I hope that you sold your game!