Unlocked iPhone 3G: the plot deepens!

Stephen Withers
Tuesday, 17 June 2008 13:10

Business IT - Technology

It turns out that Linelink Data Communications is the registered business name of James Michael Robbins, a sole trader. Now don't get us wrong, there's nothing wrong with being a sole trader - to resort to a cliché, some of our best friends are sole traders.

And while a limited company can be used to protect an owner's assets from creditors, a sole trader has no such protection: practically everything he or she owns is on the line, or in this case, the - ahem - linelink .

According to an accountant we consulted, the main reason for operating as a sole trader rather than as a company is because the compliance costs exceed the benefits, and that's likely to be the case if the annual profit (including any salaries paid to the owners) is modest - say under $100,000.

In the absence of information from Linelink or Apple, we did some more digging.

There's no street address shown on Linelink's web site, only a PO box. Consumer Affairs Victoria, part of the state's Department of Justice, says consumers shopping on the Internet should "Make sure the vendor provides a street address, business registration details... and contact details."

Victorian state law requires newspaper advertisers to provide a street address, but this reassurance doesn't seem to apply to e-commerce - maybe the Fair Trading Act needs an update?

What does the federal government have to say? The answer is on page 3.