[eloff]

You're right that it is a lot of hassle, but you're also missing the fact that it's a lot easier for Google to defend itself to the IRS than for you to do so. The amount Google would need to pay lawyers, in that case, is so much smaller than what they save on taxes, that it makes perfect sense for them. The opposite is true for you. For example, the IRS will probably call you on your name licensing trick and charge you with tax evasion. Even if you could afford to defend yourself, you'd probably lose the case.

Also, I'm not an expert on the subject, but I seem to recall reading that in some countries, corporate tax tricks like that don't work for one-person companies. It depends on how many full-time employees the company has.

I think it's ridiculous that big megacorps can eliminate huge parts of their tax burden while the regular Joe cannot. The system is overly complex and tilted in the favor of the rich and large companies. That's not what the people agreed to when they accepted a taxation system during and following the first world war.