Credit cards are used for patenting by business community

The July 24, (2007 unnoticed!) edition of the Wall Street Journal, page B5, had an article about how small businesses are using credit cards as an alternative to business loans. Often credit cards are easier and quicker to obtain, and lately credit card interest rate charges haven't been too different from bank loans. This use has been reported on before. This most recent story had a patent angle I found interesting:

When Kim Babjak needed more capital to jump-start her consumer products business eight years ago, she turned to plastic. ... So after being turned down for small-business loans by banks because she lacked a business history and her business plan was considered too optimistic, the entrepreneur decided to use two credit cards ... Ms. Babjak ran into debt problems when she was sued for patent infringement and ran up big legal bills. "I had to go groveling to family and friends to [borrow money to] pay off the credit cards on time, and that was a really uncomfortable situation for me.", she says. It took her three years to pay back her friends and family.