What is a Vermont Virtual Company?
From Vermont Virtual
A Vermont Virtual Company is a limited liability company formed under the laws of the State of Vermont.
These laws allow companies to form and operate entirely online. There is no need for paper based filings, in person (or even synchronous) annual meetings, or a physical address for the company (aside from the address of the agent for service of process -- which can be a company in vermont that provides this service. {link to come}
LLC's can establish a wide range of relationships among members, by means of a contract, called an "operating agreement" that all members are required to sign before they join a particular company.
If you use a template Operating Agreement that we provide {link to come}, you can establish a company that is based solely (or primarily) on the pooling of time, attention and effort (as opposed to investment of capital in exchange for shares).
In other words, you can create a wiki for profit! (or for "not for loss" -- if you want to coordinate the activity of a group to do some good for the world, administer a common resource, or just have fun).
We know you love creating valuable things of various kinds. And you know there are others out there who also love this kind of work or who would be willing to contribute in various ways to the work of a company that served those goals. Now you can make it easy for those other people to find you and collaborate together to become even more effective.
All you have to do is found the company. Articulate it's goals and outline the various roles that need to be played (inviting others to self-select to play these roles). Once you have filed with the Secretary of State (we'll help with this) and paid a modest up front fee, your new company will be a real legal entity that can open a bank account, enter into contracts with customers.
Your operating agreement can specify that the members will distribute any net revenues based on mutual ratings of the contributions made by others. We'll provide a template that helps the group go through this process. You can also take votes to make decisions together -- such as when to authorize a particular person to act as an agent of the company for a particular purpose.
The "limited liability" of a LLC means that members will not be liable for the debts of the company. And you become a member, and potentially entitled to a payment out of net revenues if your contributions are valued by others, just by signing up and taking part in the joint work. The company itself will own any intellectual property in the resulting work product -- so you won't have to worry about separate deals re copyrights. And any payments will be treated as payments to independent contractors, so the company won't have to file detailed tax reporting forms until it has enough net revenue to distribute to the group.
There is a lot more to tell. But it is all really very simple. Form or join a company. Work with others to create intellectual property to license or to provide services to customers, and split the proceeds as the group sees fit. You will have a net job to supplement your day job, and you'll get to do what you love to do in the company of others who you would never otherwise have found. And, aside from the founder(s) who pay the intial fees, no one has to invest any money up front.
