THE AGE OF THE INTERNET - RETAILERS DON'T MISS OUT!!

The age of the internet is upon us and retailers should not ignore it. Dotcom companies are started every day and a great number of these are reaping the financial rewards of the net. Don't miss out!

Macdonald-Henderson have advised a number of clients on the setting up of a dot com company and thereafter a commercial website, and we can help you too.

PRELIMINARY ISSUES

In setting up a dotcom company, you will be presented with the same issues you would have to confront if you were setting up a traditional "bricks and mortar" company. You will still have to incorporate a company and think about the company set up. If you are going to employ people you will have to get contracts of employment drafted etc. For detailed discussion on these points please check out our guidelines at :-

Company and Commercial

Employment Law

Intellectual Property and I.T.

WEBSITE

Outlined below are the initial points which should be considered prior to setting up the website.

SECURITY

Consumers are wary of purchasing on-line as a result of various sites in the past not being as secure as they could have been and customers personal details i.e their credit card numbers becoming available to other surfers of the net. It is imperative that potential customers are assured that your website is safe, secure and legitimate. This can be done by "encryption". The industry standard method is known as "Secure Socket Layering" although there are other products available. This system is used to protect information which is transmitted to your website via a customers computer. Basically, as soon as customers enter a page which asks for their personal details and they begin to type then that particular transfer of information from the customers computer to yours over the internet is encrypted. This means that it is secure and no one, except the customer and the E-tailer can access the information. The customer can identify the encryption process starting by the letter "S" appearing in the http:// prefix in the address bar so that it becomes https:// and also by a small padlock appearing in the bottom of the browser window.

COPYRIGHT

You will want to make sure that people are aware that the information contained on your website is copyright protected. A statement of copyright should therefore be incorporated. Please see our own copyright statement which can be accessed via the "small print" hyperlink at the foot of the page.

PRIVACY

Another important aspect of E-tailing is privacy. Customers who purchase on-line are often concerned about their personal details being collected and then made available to other E-tailers without their consent. E-tailers will often want to collate details of customers so that they can send details of forthcoming sales and promotions etc. You should be clear on your website what your privacy policy actually is and how it is used. You should invite customers who may not be happy for their information to be so collated to let you know that this is indeed their view. We will provide a sample privacy statement upon request.

DISCLAIMERS

Again, have a look at our disclaimers on our "small print" page. In order to limit your own liability you really must include disclaimers on viruses, links to other websites which may be accessed from your own web page and dependent upon the type of business you operate, disclaimers against the accuracy of the information contained on your site.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

You will want terms and conditions that suit you to be drafted and available on your website. The terms and conditions must be easily accessible in order for them to stand up in court. However, this does not mean that they need to be on full display on your home page. You should have a paragraph in similar terms to the following available for access to customers and, of course, we can help you prepare appropriate terms and conditions.

· No contract will subsist between you and [ ] Limited for the sale by it to you of any product unless and until [ ] Limited accepts your order by e-mail confirming that it has shipped your product. That acceptance will be deemed complete and will be deemed for all purposes to have been effectively communicated to you at the time [ ] Limited sends the e-mail to you (whether or not you receive that e-mail). For the avoidance of doubt, any such contract will be deemed to have been concluded in Scotland and will be governed by the "terms and conditions of supply" of [ ] Limited by which you agree to be bound as soon as your order is placed.

DATA PROTECTION

E-tailers must remember that they need to be registered under the Data Protection Acts if they are storing customers details. The Data Protection Registrar can be contacted at Wycliffe House, Waterhouse, Waterlane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF on telephone number 01625 545745. Someone in the Notifications Department can assist with your application.

If you would like more advice on the setting up of a commercial website please contact Morinne Macdonald who will be happy to assist you.