QUESTION:

Billy is keen to start his own business selling frozen pizza on-line using the internet.

He decides to advertise his pizza by using the daily newspapers.In the advertisement he states as follows :-

High Quality Frozen Pizzas available for sale

We accept orders on-line atwww.frozen-pizza.com.

Place your order now and receive a 50% discount off

the original price of $20.00 per packet.

Terms and conditions apply.

Bob is going to hold a party soon.He sees the advertisement and is keen to buy the frozen pizza.Bob goes on-line to Billy's website.However, he is unable to click on the 'place order' icon.There is a phone number displayed on website with a statement inviting customers to place orders through the means of sms text message.

Accordingly, Bob places the order for 20 packets of the frozen pizzas via sms text message and sends the text message to Billy.

Unfortunately, Billy is away in Malaysia and his handphone does not have an auto roaming facility.As a result, he does not receive the sms text message sent by Bob.

Esther is a canteen operator who used to make her own pizza using the basic ingredients.However, when she saw how cheap the frozen pizza was being sold, she decided to place orders for these.

She goes to Billy's website and places an order for 200 packets.The delivery is to be made within one week as Esther has a big catering project.However, she fails to read the terms and conditions column before placing the order.

Unknown to Esther, Billy has reserved the right to accept or reject any order above 100 packets.This limit was placed by Billy as he was concerned about the sharp increase in the price of flour given the current surge in the price of such commodities, as it would than make his business less profitable.

Mandy is Billy's friend. She places an order for 10 packets.She tells Billy that since they are friends she should get a discount. She tells him that if she does not hear from him within 7 days, she considers the discount as confirmed and agreed.

Amy is Billy's regular customer. She buys the pizza from him on a weekly basis and the orders are delivered directly to her door step every week.She pays Billy once every quarterly.Amy falls behind on payment to Billy for 2 quarters.When Billy demands payment, she tells him that since they do not have any signed contract between them, he does not have any legal rights against her for the outstanding payment.

Meanwhile, the on-line ordering idea proves to be a failure as not many people use the internet to place orders.As a result, Billy reverts to his traditional mode of taking orders over the phone and he abandons the on-line project.

As Billy did not receive the sms text message from Bob, he fails to make the delivery.Bob waits till the night of his party and is angry at the non-delivery.He calls Billy and threatens to sue him.

Esther on the other hand fails to receive her order of 200 packets.As a result, she is unable to cater for her customer at a major corporate function.Her customer threatens to sue her.

Advise parties.

Please use your knowledge of Business law to analyse the cases above. Word 1500+