As the Internet matures, so does the nature of intellectual property legal services required by Internet users. Initially, intellectual property legal services were primarily demanded to facilitate Internet startups. As e-commerce matured, the demand for legal services related to licensing Internet intellectual property overshadowed requests for legal services for Internet startups. Most recently, requests for enforcement of Internet intellectual property rights appears to be overtaking calls for legal services related to licensing Internet intellectual property.
Fifteen years ago, services which resulted in either a patent issuance or a trademark or copyright registration was the leading form of Internet intellectual property legal work. Such intellectual property prosecution facilitated funding of Internet startups by allowing investors to receive intellectual property collateral in exchange for cash.
