

Ask HN: Should I register my iOS Dev Account as an Individual or Business? - ChelseaT

What are the main differences? Pros &#38; Cons? What materials are necessary to register as a company?
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avalore
As a company your apps will be published by your company name, you can allow
up to 5 users to work under your account. As an individual you have 1 login
and apps are published under your own name (with a trading as name, which can
be set only once). If you think you'd ever want to change to a company account
in the future then do so from the start as it can be a huge pain to get
changed in the future.

In the UK you need to provide company registration details to register as a
company and Apple will give you a quick call to confirm that you personally
have the authority to enter in to a contract on behalf of your company.

Edit: It's most likely obvious but worth pointing out that should there ever
be a legal issue with any of your apps then these would be aimed at your
company rather than yourself if registered as a business. For example, a
Lodsys patent dispute would have been sent to a Ltd company in the UK rather
than the individual who owns it. This being the better scenario as a Ltd
company is limited in liability by its value rather than the owners worth
unless a personal guarantee is given.

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ChelseaT
Thanks! I understand some of the implications associated with brand
recognition, but I was curious about the legal side of things so that helps.
Also, does anyone know how likely it is or how often these lawsuits occur
regarding mobile app development?

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coryl
Not totally sure what the pros/cons are, but if you want to register as an
corp, you'll need to provide the proper paperwork to Apple.

I suppose one pro is that your personal name doesn't show up on your app
listings, just your corporation's name.

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callmeed
I created an LLC and filed as a company. When you do this, you also need a tax
ID number from the IRS and a bank account. The bank will also require your tax
ID and LLC/corp papers. Sounds like a hassle but it wasn't actually too bad.

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fourmii
Did you use a lawyer and/or an accountant to setup the LLC? Or did you use one
of those legal template websites?

