[gmw]

Check the Smashwords FAQ for ISBN: If they supply the ISBN then they become the publisher of record, and they don't recommend that you use it elsewhere (eg: if you distribute direct to Amazon or via other service). Apparently, in the past, they offered a paid ISBN that registered you as the publisher ... but this was always a bit iffy anyway, from what I've read in other places.

There are places claim that their free ISBNs make you the publisher - which may technically true, but that's a sort double-speak. The general advice is that if you want to be seen as the publisher then buy and register your own ISBNs.

But, having said all that, there doesn't seem to be a good way of always ensuring all distributors show the right publisher details. I distribute e-books through BookBaby, but purchased my own ISBNs. Most places show this correctly, but Sony (for example) still have BookBaby listed as the publisher. (ETA: I use one ISBN for all e-book editions, which I think is good, although some suggest that a separate ISBN should be used to Kindle/.mobi versus epub editions - but I never got the option to do that with BookBaby even if I'd wanted to.)

With my print-edition (with a separate ISBN to the e-book) the publisher is showing as my consulting company because it is that company that deals with the printer, despite the fact that the ISBN was registered to me personally.