Those who enter into an agreement with an intellectual property service provider commit themselves to a relationship that has advantages and expectations specific to that relationship. For this reason, direct comparisons of service providers outside an institutional context is of limited utility. A more useful analysis (and one that has more long-term viability given the rapidly changing nature of intellectual property and its management) identifies the underlying issues that all service providers, users, and rightsholders must consider when they explore different options for managing intellectual property in an increasingly electronic world. An awareness of these issues makes all parties to an intellectual property agreement more knowledgeable about the relationships they enter into, more aware of risks and responsibilities, and more likely to achieve their intellectual property management goals.
A review of service providers’ activities highlights some of the most important issues that arise in intellectual property management relationships. (Readers are referred to Appendix A for information on the methodology used in conducting this review.) In this chapter, the structure, function, and operations of intellectual property service providers are discussed, with particular focus on context and background issues and methods of operation. Subsequent chapters focus on content and usage management, and specific rightsholder, user, and economic issues.
| A. Formation and Development | |
| History and Startup Relationships | |
| Size and Scale | |
| Organizational Mission | |
| Governance Structures | |